Yin and Yang
by narutokid16
Summary: The past is supposed to be the past, right? Wrong. What happens when an old threat resurfaces? How could the events of one summer affect our favorite characters in such a drastic way? Life cannot exist without the good and the bad, light and dark, yin...and yang. I own nothing. This story is the awaited sequel to my previous entry Just a Dream, please read that story first.
1. My Demons

Chapter One: My Demons

"I'm home!" I shut the door behind me, kicking off my shoes and placing them neatly by the door before proceeding inside.

"Hey sexy man." Tadashi said as he sauntered into the living room and kissed me on the cheek. "How was your day?"

I loosened my tie and set my bag down. "I'm beat. I had that presentation for class today."

"The one for your Applied Mechanical Physics class?"

"Yup. That one. I think I did well, Professor Miller had an impressed look on her face."

"Well that's a change of pace. She normally has a condescending look plastered on her face." He helped me take off my suit jacket, draping it over a chair in the kitchen.

'"Got that right. She seemed thoroughly impressed though, oh thanks for the notes from that class by the way."

"Anything for my fiancé." He pecked me on the cheek again before walking back to the kitchen and tending to something I couldn't see. I figured he was handling dinner.

"So what's for dinner tonight? More fast food?" I took a seat at the center island in the kitchen

"No smartass. If you look around you, I'm in the midst of preparing a rather appetizing meal."

I looked at the counter and noticed an array of ingredients and kitchen utensils strewn about. "Hmph, try not to burn the house down this time will ya?"

Tadashi turned and glared at me. "I burn something ONE TIME and you never let me forget it."

"It's just how I am. You should be used to it by now."

"You would think, but no. As I recall it was your fault anyway." I stiffened in my seat when I realized that it was indeed my fault. I should have known roping Tadashi into a spontaneous blow job while he was cooking wouldn't end well. "Anyway, I'm sautéing some chicken in a sweet and spicy sauce. I got the recipe from Go Go."

"How is our speed demon anyway? Haven't seen her or Honey Lemon in a month."

"She's doing great. You know those two, ever since they started dating they're practically attached at the hip."

"Still can't believe it, never thought I'd see Go Go putting up with Honey's optimism and constant cheer."

"Or Honey putting up with Go Go's insatiable appetite for all things fast and or violent."

"Then again we can't really judge now can we?" I grabbed a carrot from the nearby salad Tadashi had sitting out and started to munch on. "I mean, we're brothers and we're engaged."

"You're right. As long as they're happy, that's all that matters." An easy silence descended upon us. All that was heard was the occasional clanking of the pan on the stove when Tadashi moved it.

I let out a quiet sigh, relaxing for the first time all day, finally having a chance to think. The first thought that came to my head was of Go Go and Honey Lemon since we were just talking about them. It still seems kind of odd that after these past couple of years, Go Go suddenly asked Honey out, in her own subtle and very nonchalant way. Speaking of odd couples, Fred and Wasabi are doing just great, they've even tossed around the idea of getting engaged too. Aunt Cass and Naes are going to get married soon as well, in a few months we'll have a new member of the family. In all honesty, Tadashi and I couldn't be any happier for Aunt Cass. Naes is a great guy and has treated us like his own since the day he met us. He's done more than just get us great offers and deals for our tech, he's also talked to us about being a couple on his own terms and helped with other issues that we've had. Aunt Cass really did snag a great guy.

That wasn't the only great aspect of our lives now, aside from great relationships, I was flourishing in my studies and Tadashi was raking in money as a full time manager at the shipping place he worked at. Of course the money from the deals we made with Naes was still pouring in so money was never an issue. Although most of it was going to charities and organizations once we pulled out enough to cover our expenses. We even gained a bit of fame because of our "generous nature" as the tabloids put it. Honestly I just see it as being the good people Aunt Cass raised us to be, it's as natural as breathing.

"Hirooooo. Hey space cadet, you still with me?"

I blinked a few times, snapping out of my thoughts. Tadashi was waving his hand in my face trying to catch my attention. "Hmm?"

"You okay? You spaced out."

"Oh yea, just thinking."

He set a plate down in front of as well as one on his side of the island. "Anything bugging you?"

"Nah, just…reflecting is a better term I suppose."

He plated some chicken and salad for me before doing the same for himself. "Go on."

"Well" I picked up the metal chopsticks next to my plate, gesturing them as I spoke. "I was just thinking about Go Go and Honey, Fred and Wasabi, Aunt Cass and Naes-"

"Soon to be Uncle Naes." Tadashi swiftly corrected as he seated himself across from me.

"Right." I chuckled. "Anyway, I was thinking about them and our lives. Nothing really deep or anything just getting lost in thought."

"You sure nothing else is bugging you? You know you can talk to me. At least you should know after, oh how long has it been now…18 years?"

"Yes my persistent little love bug, I'm sure. Like I said I was just reflecting, nothing more. I'm actually quite happy with life right now. Classes are going well and summer will be here soon, we're stable as far as money goes, everyone's happy…"

"I feel like there's a 'but' coming." He was right…the more I talked, the more I got a sense of foreboding. "Hiro. Spit it out. Your face just changed."

"Fuck."

"Yea you should know that after knowing you all your life, I can tell something's wrong at a glance. It happened while you were talking."

"Yea…As I kept talking I started to think things were going…too well. Usually when happiness plateaus like this SOMETHING shakes it up. When we were first dating everything was fine then people started finding out, then the whole thing with Mika, then Aunt Cass kicked you out-"

"Hiro." He placed a calming hand on mine to stop me from rambling. "Calm down. You're getting worked up over thoughts that that overactive brain of yours cooked up. Nothing's gonna happen. Well, nothing we can't handle anyway. We're the Hamada brothers, our family is a bit tenacious if you haven't noticed." I chuckled a bit but I guess I still had a doubtful look on my face. "Look at me." I looked up at him timidly. He brushed my bangs away from my eyes and smiled at me.

"I love you."

"I love you too." We shared a brief but much needed kiss. "Don't worry so much okay? If something comes up, we'll handle it okay?"

"Okay. I trust you."

"Thank you. Now eat, the chicken before it gets cold."

"Ugh….Jesus what time is it?" I look over Hiro's disheveled hair at the clock and note that it's 4:19 in the morning. I gingerly slide my arm out from under the pillow Hiro is sleeping on then pace into the kitchen for a snack. "Why are you awake at this ungodly hour Hamada?" I knew why, it's because Hiro was right. The foreboding feeling he was getting was justified.

I reached into the pantry, flipping on the light and absent mindedly scanning the shelves for something to eat. I grabbed a bag of marshmallows and some canned ravioli before switching off the light and taking a seat at the center island.

"When are you gonna man up and show him that letter Hamada?" I muttered to myself. I looked over at the end table in the living room, more specifically the closed drawer. I meant to tell him tonight but he was dead tired and then he brought up his newfound sense of worry…the timing would have been all wrong.

I look down at the now empty can of ravioli that I assume I had been munching on while lost in my thoughts. "Fuck." I reach for a marshmallow just to find an empty plastic bag. "Damn it…well might as well get some water and try and get back to sleep…still gotta finish that paperwork for the next shipment of deliveries in the morning." I toss out the bag and proceed to wash out the can so I can recycle it when I hear footsteps coming down the hall from the bedroom. I look up and see a sleepy Hiro rubbing his eye, mouth open just enough to see the gap in his teeth that I've come to adore, and my night shirt hanging off of his shoulder.

"…Dashi what are you doing up?"

"I could ask you the same thing."

He staggered over to me and gently leaning into my arm. "You know I don't sleep well when you're not in bed with me."

I pulled him into a one armed hug. "I know. I was just a bit hungry okay? I just need to get my drink, then we can go back to bed." I kissed the top of his head and rubbed his shoulder. He nodded and wrapped his arm around my waist.

We started walking back towards the bedroom after I filled my cup with water. "When are you gonna tell me what's been bugging you?"

I froze up for a second. "W-what? What are you-"

He gently pulled away from me and leaned against the wall. "Dashi…I'm not stupid. I've been waiting for you to tell me. Don't lie okay? I know you as well as you know me. So…when are you gonna tell me?"

Even when he's half asleep he's still as persistent as ever. "Okay…I was going to tell you when we sat down to eat but you started to worry. I'll tell you in the morning okay? I promise." He nodded in agreement. "Alright. Now, back to bed."

As soon as we were nestled comfortably in bed, Hiro tapped my chest a couple of times. "Hey…Dashi…"

"Hmm?"

"I love you…"

I tilted his chin up and kissed him. "Love you too. Sorry about lying."

"Apology accepted."

"Get some sleep okay?"

"You too. You still have paperwork to do…"

"I know. I'll get to it in the morning."

"Alright…love you…"

"Love you too."

"There. All finished." I set my pen down and looked at the clock and it read 12:30 p.m. "Only took me an hour." I rolled out of bed around at around 11:30 to do my paperwork and had expected Hiro to be up with me but he was still asleep. "Hmph, for someone who claims to not sleep well without me, he's doing a damn good job of disproving that."

"I heard that." I look down the hall and see an extremely disheveled 17 year old staggering towards me.

"Hey sleepy head. Welcome to the world of the living. I see you decided to skip putting on my night shirt this time and opted for skin tight boxer-briefs instead."

"Shut up." He yawned, still trying to wake up. "Besides, you love seeing me in all my unkempt glory."

"As well as your morning glory." I purred leaning forward, resting my chin on the back of my hand.

He looked down and noticed that he was sporting his usual morning wood but made no attempts to cover it, in fact he flaunted it. "Damn right. You love it." He sauntered over to me and placed his head in the curve of my neck. "You love it when your little Hiro acts all sexy."

"You're asking for trouble as soon as you roll out of bed?"

"Maybe I am. What of it?"

"You know you don't wanna start thi~s." He started to lick and bite my exposed neck, causing me to moan a bit while I was talking.

"Oh but I do."

"Seriously?" He clamped down on my neck and that's when I knew he wasn't going to let up. "Alright. Let's play." I turned around, grabbed him, and pushed him against the wall with his arms above his head.

"You brute." He purred into the side of my neck. He wrapped his legs around my waist, letting himself sink down just enough to grind against my hardening length.

"You're the one who's practically riding me through my pants."

"Your point being?"

"Wanna take this to the bedroom?" He nodded, and without any hesitation, I whisked him away to our love nest.

We stripped down in record time and, as if we had never done any of this before, we were going at it. I had Hiro handcuffed to the bed and was taking my time teasing him. Caressing his inner thighs, groping his chest, rubbing his nipples, letting my fingertips glide ever so lightly over the surface of his skin, and gently stroking his oozing cock. I loved seeing him get so worked up over the lightest touches. I didn't always have to be rough to get him off. I could be gentle and tease him or just dive right in, it really depended on the situation.

"Ba…bastard…"

"Sorry what was that? Couldn't hear you over the sounds of you begging for more."

"Just…enough…put it in. Please."

I leaned in next to his ear. "I love it when you beg." I let my husky breath waft across his skin. I could see the goosebumps beginning to form on his skin and it gave me that same rush I always get when I realize how much power I have over him.

I aligned my fingers with his entrance, letting him watch as I poured the lube onto my fingers. His eyes were filled with anticipation and lust, he knew it was coming and barely flinched when my fingers glided up his hole before making their way inside. He let at a few constricted gasps before relaxing enough for me to start moving my fingers.

I knew the moment I hit pay dirt because Hiro rocked into my fingers and I withdrew them as soon as he did. He glared at me as best he could with that streak of scarlet running across his face. I moved forward a bit, rubbing the head of my cock along his hole. I could see him trying to force it in but I wasn't ready to stop teasing him just yet.

He leered at me again before I decided to give him what he was after, I pushed forward at an agonizingly slow pace until I was fully sheathed inside him. The breathy moan he always lets out when I finally penetrate him never ceased to make me melt. I quickly find a rhythm that satisfies both of us, the sound of moist skin colliding begins to get drowned out by Hiro's cries for more.

"Ahhh….Tadashi…rougher."

"The hell do you want me to do?"

"Let me loose."

I stopped for a second, the sound of labored breaths filling the air replaced our moans. "You sure?"

He nodded. "I want it…I want it against the wall…I want you to…to pull my hair. Grope me."

I looked at him in stunned silence. We had done that before but Hiro opted out of it because I was being too rough, imagine that. "You sure? Last time I was too rough with you."

"I'm sure…our safety word is still care and…I wanna feel alive. You're the only one who can make me feel it." He gave me that shota-esque pout he was becoming known for and that pretty much sealed the deal. Before I knew what was happening, I was pinning him against the wall, face first, with one hand pinning his arms behind his back and the other pulling his hair.

"Like that?"

He grunted. "Yes…this is amazing."

I was slamming into him with the right amount of force, at the right angle. I sunk my teeth into his neck and he let out a high pitched moan that sounded more like a scream. If someone were recording this they'd probably compare it to that cliché scream you hear in bad, poorly directed, porn shot on a college student's budget.

"I…can't…cumming!" With that broken sentence, Hiro was shooting up the length of the wall as well as his stomach. His body started to get heavy but I held him up.

"What do you think you're doing?"

"Huh?"

"I still haven't cum yet." I purred into his ear as I spoke. I pushed upwards, making him stand up and eventually stretch up on his toes.

"Ahh….Dashi…"

"What's the matter my dear Hiro?" I trailed kisses from his neck to his shoulder. "Is there something" I rocked back and forth slowly. "troubling you?"

He pressed the palm of his free hand flat against the wall so it was level with his shoulder. "Too…good…Tadashi…"

I kept rocking my hips back and forth at a steady pace, using Hiro's moans as incentive to get as much pleasure out of this as possible. Before long I was cumming inside Hiro and he was cumming on the wall again. We both started panting, trying to catch our breath. I leaned against him, resting my head on the back of his neck.

"I…"

"Yea…"

"Shower?"

"Mmhmm." We staggered into the bathroom and got cleaned up. Showering together almost turned into round two but Hiro reminded me that we still had something to talk about. We got dressed, cleaned up the wall, and walked into the kitchen. I made him a cup of coffee with a decent amount of French vanilla creamer and sugar, the way he loves it, before sitting down with him.

"So."

"So…"

"What's bugging you? Is it really that bad?" He took a sip of his coffee as he spoke.

"Sort of…" I sighed then went to retrieve the letter. I grabbed it from the drawer in the living room and when I returned, I slid it across the island to Hiro.

"What's this?" He set his mug down and opened the envelope, reading over the documents in what I assume was stunned silence. "No…"

"Unfortunately yes." The envelope contained a letter from the San Frasokyo Center for Corrections I received a week ago saying Miaka Inoue would be paroled shortly after Aunt Cass and Naes' wedding. Apparently the charges of attempted murder and kidnapping were dropped because her lawyer found some sort of legal loophole or technicality.

"This…this is what…"

"I wanted to tell you last night…I wanted to tell you when it got here but the timing was-"

"Off." I nodded. "I can't say I blame you…" He spoke softly. Still processing the information.

"You don't? I was sure you'd hit the ceiling."

"I…I probably would have if you showed me last week or yesterday…but now…I'm just…in shock."

I tentatively reached out and touched his hand. "Hiro…what are you thinking?"

"I honestly have no idea. My mind is racing. It's darting back and forth between when we first met her, to when she attacked us, to when she got hauled in. What if-"

"Stop right there. No 'what if's'. Don't even go there. You'll drive yourself insane that way. I know the way your brain works, you'll start with one scenario and within seconds you're imagining the worst. Not this time." I took both of his hands in mine. "Trust me on this, nothing is going to happen. Okay?" He nodded slowly. "Okay then. C'mere." He got up and walked over to me then I pulled him into a hug. He rested his head against my chest, as I cradled the back of his head in my hand. "We're gonna be fine. I promise."

"This isn't over…not by a long shot…Tadashi Hamada, you will be mine." I look at the picture of him nearest to me. A newspaper clipping of them, some article about them donating a lot of money to some charity. "Hiro…you will not stand in the way of our happiness. Not again. I'm not that idiotic girl who rushed in without a plan. No, no. This time…I have a plan and it's all or nothing." I go back to my planning…making sure everything is going to happen the way I want it to. Predicting how people will think and act isn't easy but when you've had 2 years to do it…well…it becomes easier.

I learned by watching my fellow inmates. Picking a couple of subjects and watching them, listening to them, hearing their stories in counseling and predicting what they would do throughout the day. It was child's play by the end of the fourth month. Since I know a bit about everyone in their group, I can somewhat predict what will happen. Go Go, the tough hot head. Wasabi the gentle powerhouse. Fred, the lazy, goofy, borderline genius, rich kid. Honey Lemon the kind heart. Hiro the logical hot head. And my dear, sweet Tadashi, the protective older brother.

This plan is really coming together. "One more month…one more month until I can put my plan into action…"


	2. Carnivore

Chapter Two: Carnivore

"Have fun on your honeymoon you two."

"Yea, have fun in Paris."

"Oh boys I'll miss you so much." Aunt Cass hugged us for what must have been the tenth time in the last five minutes.

We hugged her back, slightly laughing at how sentimental she was being. "We'll miss you too. And you Uncle Naes. Take care of her okay? We don't want this to end up like Taken where we have to fly out to Paris to come find you guys."

Naes got a decent laugh out of that. Considering how much he loves Liam Neeson, I bet being in a Taken movie would be almost as wonderful as marrying Aunt Cass. "Don't worry boys, she's safe with me. Although she's not exactly a push over." He pulled her over to him and kissed her on the temple.

"Oh Naes, stop it." She giggled. "You have the number of the hotel right boys?"

"Yup."

"Flight 118 to Paris, France now boarding."

"That's us. We have to get going."

My face dropped a little. It's weird, normally Aunt Cass had been only a few miles away. Now she's going to Paris. "Alright. One last hug." We all gathered for a group hug and as we were pulling apart, Aunt Cass held onto me for a bit longer.

"It'll be okay Hiro. I love you boys."

"Love you too Aunt Cass." Always the observant one, giving me what I needed when I needed it. She's gotten pretty good at this parenting thing…even though we're both adults now.

"Take care of my chubby baby, boys! We'll call you when we land!"

"We will!" And with that, Aunt Cass and Naes boarded their flight.

"Ready to head back?"

"Sure. We're meeting everyone at our place for drinks and it's not really courteous of the hosts to be late."

"You got me there. Come on." Tadashi nudged me towards the other end of the terminal but as we were walking, I felt like we were being followed. I looked over my shoulder but didn't see anyone. "Something the matter?"

"Nah. Just gonna miss Aunt Cass is all." I hated lying to Tadashi…in reality it was a half-truth. I didn't want to get Tadashi all worked up, especially with a fun evening ahead of us.

"I know. I will too but she's off having fun. She'll be fine." We reached the parking structure and loaded into his car. "You plan on drinking tonight?"

"Maybe a little. Don't wanna get shit-faced in case someone needs a ride…if they decide to leave. It could end up like that one night when everyone came over for the launch of Revelations 2 and ended up passed out in various places." He started the car and started to drive out of the structure.

"Now that was a fun night. Watching them try and kill the infected while off their asses was hysterical. Go Go and I were the only two that actually knew what to do and didn't get killed."

He hit the highway and flipped on the car's cruise control then reached over to the radio to turn on some music. "Anything specific you wanna hear?"

"Hmm? Oh no. I'm good."

He moved his hand away from the radio and glanced at me. "Spill. Now."

"What? What are you-"

"Don't even try that with me. You always wanna listen to music and sing along with me on long car trips. I caught on to your bullshit at the airport. So try again, what's wrong?"

"Fine…God Tadashi sometimes your persistence is annoying." I crossed my arms and looked out of my window.

"Ignoring that."

"Well…I got a weird vibe in the airport…as we were walking."

"So it wasn't just me…"

I whirled my head back around to look at him. "What?"

"I felt it too. Like someone was watching us…"

"So…what now?"

"It might be paranoia. Knowing Mika is out of prison and roaming around the city…It's been a few months since the wedding and she hasn't made a move so that's encouraging."

"More like troubling." I rested my chin between my index finger and thumb. "There are one of two things that are going on. Either the system has actually done something for her and gotten her help or she's planning."

"You're placing your bet on the latter aren't you?" I nodded and Tadashi let out an exasperated sigh. "Well I know there's not much I can do to change your mind." He exited the highway then pulled up to a stop light.

"Pretty much."

"I know by the time we get home you'll have thought of at least 30 contingency plans and picked out the most applicable."

"Yup."

"Well…can't do much besides back you up. I'm still optimistic that nothing is going to happen."

"I know…I'm trying to be too…but..."

"You're worried. I get it. Like I said, I'll back you up. Just try and have fun tonight okay?"

"I will. Promise."

"Hello?"

 _"_ _You gonna let us stand out here all evening or are you gonna let us in?"_

"Ah the ever tactful Ms. Tomago. Hiro, buzz them in!"

"Alright!"

" _Be up in a sec."_

"See you in a bit. Hey babe, are the drinks ready?"

"Almost, pouring the last of them now. I still gotta make some when they get up here."

"Right. You've become quite the little bartender."

"You just needed an excuse to get me into that vest and a bowtie when you taught me how to make drinks."

"Your point being?" A knock on the door interrupted my rebuttal. Tadashi smirked at me before going to open the door.

"HEYOOOOO! PARTY'S HERE!" Go Go walked in holding 3 bottles of booze above her head. "I got the good stuff."

"TADASHI! It has been far too long." Honey Lemon pulled him into a tight hug which he reciprocated.

"It really has."

"It's only been a couple months."

"A couple of months feels like an eternity when it comes to your best friends Go Go."

"Honey Lemon has a point. Last time we saw you guys, we were at Cass's wedding."

Honey Lemon sighed. "Such a wonderful ceremony."

"Yea dude, it was gorgeous." Fred shut the door behind him and before I knew it, everyone was reminiscing about the wedding. Go Go came over and set down the bottles she brought on the island, giving me a quick hug before sitting in the living room with everyone else.

"Let's see here…s'mores vodka, chardonnay, Goldschlager, and Captain Morgan. Hmph, go hard or go home I suppose." I muttered to myself. I started mixing drinks and slipping into my own world. I started thinking of Aunt Cass's wedding. It really was a nice ceremony. Instead of the traditional American wedding, we had a Japanese wedding.

It was a small but intimate gathering. Naes had family and a couple of close friends there, we invited Wasabi, Go Go, Honey Lemon, Fred, and of course Mochi. Aunt Cass looked stunning in her kimono. The way it was layered was amazing, pink and white which faded to black. It was actually a nice pairing. The Sakura blossoms on it were incredibly detailed. Naes's kimono matched hers pretty well: the bottom half had the same fading effect as Aunt Cass's did, his midsection was accented with a pink sash and the top was mostly black but the sleeves went from white, to pink, to black.

Everyone else was dressed similarly. Mochi even got his own kimono with little fish on it. Wasabi and Fred had similar looking kimonos but the designs were different. Fred's resembled consisted of, what else, reptile scales while Wasabi's was more neutral, not much flare. It was more modest.

Go Go wore a black kimono. If it wasn't for the violet accents you might have thought she was there for a funeral. Her hair was in a tight bun with white and purple flowers intertwined in it, ya know, for a touch of color. Honey lemon went for essentially the opposite. White kimono, pink and yellow accents. Her hair was coiled into two buns accented with chopsticks stuck into them. Tadashi wore a black and blue kimono and I wore a red and black one. All in all, we looked like an amazing bunch.

The venue was pristine. A cliff overlooking the San Fransokyo Bay at sunset. It was really unassuming, relying on the natural beauty of a location instead of dolling it up. Sure there were some decorations but nothing that really detracted from what was already there.

"You, barkeep, where are our drinks?"

"Huh? Oh right! Sorry. I spaced out for a bit."

"Really? Didn't seem like it. You still ended up making our drinks."

I looked down at a counter lined with skillfully crafted drinks and was admittedly impressed with my ability to crank out drinks for everyone in such a distracted state. "Hmph, look at that. I guess I can multi task pretty well."

"Yea, yea, yea, you're amazing. Now get over here with those drinks, mama needs her booze."

I picked up a tray with the first round of drinks on it. "Alright you alcoholic, first round's up." I set the tray on the coffee table and in a flash everyone has a drink in their hand.

"What do we have here mah man?" Wasabi asked eyeing the drink.

"Campfire martini. I used the vodka for that one. Next will be golden cokes made with the Goldschlager, then shots of The Captain, finishing off with a pitcher of sunset sangria. Enjoy."

Tadashi sipped his martini and nodded in approval. "I've taught you well."

"Bullshit you have. Last time you tried to 'teach' me we ended up-" He tossed a pillow at me and it hit me dead in the face.

"Quiet you."

Go Go set down her empty glass. "Seriously? You're worried about him blabbing about some hot hook up? After 2 years it's hardly noteworthy. Besides I can recall a few times you guys have been busted. Like the time at SFIT when Hiro was working."

"Or the time we all went clothes shopping." Honey Lemon chimed in while finishing her martini.

"Or that time when my van broke down and you guys agreed to give me a ride. When I was a little late you guys were in the back seat going at it."

"Or like those times at my house." Tadashi and I looked at each other and then at the floor.

"Need we go on?"

"…no…." I mumbled before slumping back to the kitchen. Mochi rubbed against my leg and meowed at me. "Don't you go being a smart ass either Mochi." His face wrinkled up, as if saying 'I was trying to comfort you.' "Sorry. Just got a lot on my mind." I bent down and started scratching behind his ears. "I'll probably tell you later. But for now, gotta go be a sexy server for our friends." I stood up, collecting two more trays and the sangria, before walking over to the collection of weirdos I call friends.

After about an hour of boozing it up, everyone was feeling pretty…frisky to put it mildly. Wasabi was flat on his back with Fred straddling his hips. They were in the 'sensual touching' phase of friskiness. Next would come the making out and grinding before clothes were going to be discarded and. If we let it get that far Hiro and I would have to pay someone to clean that spot on our floor…or incinerate it. Ya know, whichever.

Go Go was lying between Honey Lemon's legs, back to front, kissing occasionally as well as watching Wasabi and Fred trying to not have sex in the living room. Out of all of us they were the tamest. I was leaning against the couch with Hiro in my lap, singing along to 'Love Me like You Do' which was playing over the speakers. We may have looked innocent on the outside but Hiro was essentially jerking me off through my pants. Trying to keep a straight face was hard enough, but having to sing as well was just torture.

"Yeah, I'll let you set the pace  
Cause I'm not thinking straight  
My head spinning around I can't see clear no more  
What are you waiting for?"

Hiro tilted his head back, practically asking me to bite down on his neck. Instead, I softly sang the next verse into the curve of his neck.

"Will you two just do it already?" Go Go blurted out. Me, Hiro, Wasabi, and Fred all looked over at her. "Oops…should have been more specific. Anyway, either you two couples go bone your respective partners or get off of each other."

I looked at Hiro who was blushing, In all honesty I'm not sure if it was from the alcohol or Go Go's comment. "She has a point. What do you wanna do babe?"

He took a few seconds to ponder the question before smirking at me. "Bedroom."

"As you wish." I picked him up bridal style and started carrying him towards the bedroom. "You two, make sure Fred and Wasabi don't…well make sure we don't have to burn that spot on the floor."

"OR the couch for that matter." Hiro added over my shoulder. "Mochi, make sure these 4 don't do anything that'll mean replacement costs." Mochi meowed and wandered into the living room, taking up a spot on his cat tree to watch over everyone. "Good kitty. We owe you some fish." He leaned up and kissed me on the cheek. "Now…where were we?"

"Right at the part where I step over our drunk friends and take you to bed."

"My favorite part." He leaned up and kissed me as I walked us to the bedroom, shutting the door behind us.

As soon as the door was shut, Hiro used that lovely gift for flexibility of his to whip around and slam me onto the bed. He pinned one of my arms under me and the other one above my head.

"Hi there."

"Hi yourself."

"You're pretty tipsy aren't you?"

"How can you tell?"

"Let's see. The obvious blush tinting your face, the half lidded eyes, the occasional slurring of words, the goofy smile that's been on your face for hours."

"That obvious hmm?"

"Also, you're letting me have my way a lot more easily than you would if you were sober."

"What do you mean?"

"You put up a fight. You like to struggle when I'm in control. The futility of trying to escape gets you more turned on." He leaned down and kissed my neck. "But now you're so easy going. I know what you're eager for right now."

"And…that would be?"

"Something slow and sensual, not some fast paced BDSM." He looked at me lovingly, relaxing his grip on my arm. He cupped my cheek and let his thumb glide over it. "You're really cute when you're tipsy."

"What about when I'm not tipsy?" I asked with a pout.

"You're breathtaking." He kissed me softly and started to gently caress my cheek, making his way down my body just to stop at my pant line.

"Hiro…" He smirked at me. Even in my inebriated state I could see the light in his eyes. That same light that was there when I asked him to marry me, the same light that was there when I was allowed to come back home, the same light that was there when we went out to The Vermillion Dragon. "You're everything I need…"

"And you're everything I've ever wanted." He lowered himself so that he was at crotch level and began mouthing me through my jeans. I couldn't help but moan a bit at the familiar pressure.

After a few more minutes of teasing me, he finally undid my pants and slipped them, along with my boxers, down to my ankles. He looked up at me through those beautiful lashes of his before nearing his goal. I felt something cold on my thigh and jumped a bit, I looked down to see what it was and it was the locket I had given him for his sixteenth birthday. I couldn't help but smirk.

"Can't believe you still wear that…"

"Hmm?" He tucked the locket into his shirt. "Why wouldn't I? It was a heartfelt gift."

"It's just I never see you wearing it."

"I usually take it off before bed or have it in my pocket." He said shaking his head. "I treasure this gift Tadashi…as well as this one." He licked my shaft slowly making me tense up at the sudden sensation.

He continued licking around my cock for what seemed like an eternity. All that teasing had me leaking precum like a busted faucet. Finally Hiro took me into his mouth and I let out a breathy moan. He let his fingers glide over my stomach and thighs, the barely-there sensation was making me hyperaware of the warmth surrounding my cock.

His pace was even and steady. He wasn't rushing things. It's been a while since he took things this slow, but seeing as how the mood was sort of right for a slow escapade, I get why. Aside from having 4 guests down the hall, the atmosphere in the room was light but sensual. Lights off, gentle breeze coming in through the window, alcohol giving us just the right buzz for this type of thing. Wait…open window…

"Hiro. Stop." I started sitting up and pushing Hiro up by his shoulders.

"What's the matter?"

"Did you open the window?" He looked over at the window and shook his head. I slipped on my underwear and pants then walked into the living room. "Hey guys?"

Wasabi and Fred were curled up on the couch together drinking water next to Go Go and Honey Lemon who were mid-make out. They stopped to look at us. "Busy here." Go Go said.

"Just a quick question, has anyone been in our room?" They all shook their heads. I looked at Hiro with a quizzical expression on my face. "You sure you didn't open it?"

Hiro held up his hands. "Positive. You know I only ever open the window when it rains. Did you open it?"

"No. I'm sure I didn't. I only open it when it rains or when that bakery cart is in front of the building." I could feel the atmosphere in the room shift. I locked eyes with Hiro and without speaking a single word, we knew what the other was thinking. I walked over to the end table in the corner of the room and grabbed the Px4 Storm Compact which was strapped under the table. Hiro walked into the kitchen and pulled out the drawer farthest to the right, revealing spare magazines for it. He tossed me one and I quickly loaded it.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, hang on a sec! Gu-" Wasabi's protests were quickly silence by Honey Lemon who apparently understood the situation. She nodded her head towards the hallway, Hiro nodded back at her.

"Hamada." Both Hiro and I looked at Go Go but she tossed him a knife. She took out one for herself as well before we lined up in the hallway. I proceeded towards our bedroom with Hiro behind me. I heard him stop to check the bathroom and hall closet. I heard the door to our pantry open. I guess Go Go went to check the kitchen. I felt a firm pat on my shoulder, assuming it was Hiro. I proceeded into our bedroom, panning from side to side with my gun. Hiro tapped me on the shoulder and when I looked at him he nodded towards the bathroom. I nodded back at him and proceeded towards the closet.

"Clear." I called out.

"Nothing in the bathroom."

Go Go leaned against our door frame while twirling her knife. "Nothing in the…what's that?" She walked over to the wardrobe and picked up something. "Not an expert here but I don't suppose either of you, or anyone we know has this shade of hair." She held up a strand of bright red hair.

Hiro took it from her and rubbed it between his fingers. "It's not synthetic."

"Why would it be synthetic?"

"Aunt Cass dressed up as Claire Redfield for Halloween remember? That wig was crap and the 'hair' was totally fake." He looked at me and my heart just about stopped. Eyebrows slightly furrowed, eyes wide open, lips pursed, that look was a look of determination.

"I know what you're thinking."

"That I was right?"

"Besides that." I flipped the safety on the gun before ejecting the magazine and the chambered round. Go Go picked it up for me and loaded it into the magazine.

He sighed, running a hand through his hair. "This is the one time I wish that I was wrong."

"Hey babe?"

"Yes?" Honey Lemon shouted from the living room.

"The bitch is back. Go get the shotgun."

"Go Go!"

"What? Would you prefer a sword?"

I sighed. "Living room. Now. Hiro, bag that hair, we might need it later."

"Wasn't easy but I did it." I muttered to myself as I climbed into Hiro and Tadashi's window. "Didn't think I'd make it back before them." I start snooping around their room, making sure not to move anything too much. Nothing out of the ordinary aside from their…ugh…'personal toys' in the wardrobe.

I move on to the rest of the apartment. Nothing in the bathroom or hall closet. "Sword above the television. Could be troublesome in the future." I heard a meow from behind me. I turned to see Mochi approaching me. I bent down to pet him but he hissed at me and scratched me. "Ahhh! Fucking hell." I scowled at him and was about to say something to reprimand him but I heard the familiar sound of Tadashi locking his car. "Fuck. This isn't over you little demon." I run back to their room and after a quick check, I launch out of the window. "That was close. I got some good info, not enough, but something is better than nothing."

"So what do we do?"

"Hiro probably has 300 plans sorted out in his head already." Go Go said crossing her legs.

Everyone looked at me for confirmation. "Well I have narrowed what we're gonna do down to a few courses of action…"

"Told ya."

"So what are we gonna do? We await your orders, captain." Fred joked.

"We go to the police." They all looked at me dumfounded, as if I had sprouted a second head. "What? Is it so weird that I want to go to the cops before we go out 'hunting' as Go Go put it?"

"Actually yes. Seeing as how she tried to kill us and kidnap our dear sweet Honey Lemon, I expected you to want to go straight into an all-out manhunt."

"Wasabi has a point. When I talked to you about formulating a plan after she showed up at the café, you were all but committed to lopping her head off."

"I gotta say I'm mildly shocked too babe." Tadashi walked over to me and took both my hands, one of which had been playing with my locket. "I expected reasonable but this is actually something I thought I'd have to persuade you into doing."

I sigh and smile a bit before meeting Tadashi's eyes. "Well…I couldn't stay that hot headed little kid forever ya know?"

He quickly kissed my cheek. "I know, I wasn't expecting it to kick in now though."

"What's the rest of the plan dude?"

"Oh, right. Well." I looked at the bag of hair on the counter. "We have to analyze that hair, see it actually IS hers. And if it is we can go to the cops."

"Got it."

"Hey guys…what's that on the carpet?"

Our attention turned to where Honey Lemon was pointing. There were two small droplets of what appeared to be blood on the carpet near the coffee table. "Is that…blood?" I walk over to the spot on the carpet and look a bit more closely at it. "Looks like it. Tadashi get me a pair of scissors and a bag." He did as I asked and I snipped the bits of carpet with blood on them and placed them in the bag.

"Assuming we're gonna test these at SFIT?"

"Correct my dear Wasabi. We'll do it tomorrow. In the meantime, you four are spending the night. Tadashi and I have extra blankets and you all know the couch pulls out." I look at the clock and note that it's almost one in the morning. "We should head to sleep. I still have classes in the morning."

"Alright. You guys got some night clothes we can borrow?"

"Honey Lemon and I will be okay. I can sleep in my shorts and tank top. Babe you gonna be okay?"

Honey Lemon leaned over and kissed Go Go on the forehead. "I'll just sleep in my bra and panties. Not a big deal seeing as how we're all like family anyway."

"Wasabi I'm assuming you still want a pair of pajama pants?"

"Yea, can't really sleep without them. Fred's fine in his underwear right babe?" Fred nodded in agreement.

"Alright. Tadashi get the blankets." He nodded and went to the hall closet. "Do you guys need anything else?"

"Nah we'll be alright. You go get some rest." Honey Lemon got up and hugged me tight. I froze up a bit. The hug reminded me of the ones Aunt Cass gives us when we're upset. I returned the hug, giving her a light squeeze. We stayed like this for a little while before the eased her grip on me and I did the same.

"Get some rest everyone. I'll see you in the morning." I walked towards the bedroom, bypassing Tadashi on the way. I walked over to our dresser and grabbed a pair of pajama bottoms that should fit Wasabi. Tadashi came up next to me and grabbed them from me. I looked over at him and he gave me a half smirk before going to give Wasabi the pajama bottoms.

I let out an exasperated sigh. "Fucking hell. Why can't we get some peace and quiet?" I take off my shirt and walk over to the bed. "Right, the last 2 years had been quiet…I guess we were due."

"Stop it." I whip around and see Tadashi shutting our door. "Don't think like that. One could argue that we were lulled into a false sense of security just to have something happen and that this happens a lot."

"You better be going somewhere with this."

He took a couple of steps towards me, taking my hands in his. "OR, one could argue that life isn't always peaceful and easy, so we have to take the good with the bad. We gotta keep our heads up and keep moving."

"I prefer the pessimistic view." He flicked my forehead and scowled at me. "Ow! That hurt."

"Listen to me. I know you're bummed, to say the least, about what's happening. However, we'll get through it. We dealt with her in the past, and we've dealt with more since then." I looked down at the floor but he tilted my chin up so I could meet his gaze. "Remember that guy that came up to us on the street that one day we had a meeting with Naes"

"I remember. He hated us because of…well…this." I squeezed his hand.

"And do you remember what happened next?" I nodded. "He thanked us, because one of the Baymax's saved his mother's life when she had a heart attack."

"Your point?"

"Life can be good and bad Hiro. Either way we have to keep moving. In all honesty this situation, the way you're looking at it in this moment, you can choose to hold on to it or move passed it. Whether you choose to dwell like a child or move forward like the mature adult you're becoming is on you."

He was right…I could be bummed that Mika was more than likely back and still stuck in the past, or I could move forward and try and remedy this situation. "Let's move forward."

"That's my guy." He placed a hand on the back of my head and pressed his forehead to mine. "Even if you didn't elect to move forward, I'm pretty sure me and the rest of our weird family wouldn't have let you stay in the past forever."

I shut my eyes, appreciating the closeness we were sharing. He was right, even if I decided to remain in this pessimistic mood, I knew the second that I woke up, someone would be trying to snap me out of it. "We should get to bed. I have class in the morning."

"And I have to go downtown for a meeting."

"What about-"

He cut me off with a kiss. "If it's about the paper work that I was stressing about, I'm all caught up on it. I just need to read over some stuff."

"Oh, alright then." I looked at him and saw his eyes looking at something, I followed his gaze and smirked at where it led. "What's with you and my locket?"

"I guess…I'm still fascinated with it…"

A snicker escapes my lips and I look at him with a raised brow. "Fascinated?"

"Well…I thought you had stopped wearing it. It's nice to see you still do. I'm just being silly I guess."

"A little. It's a reminder of how much you mean to me." I open it and look at the pictures inside. "It reminds me of happy times no matter how bad things get." A look of realization spread across my face. "Guess I should look at it more often."

"You should." He started undressing and I took that as my signal to take off my pants and crawl into bed. He soon joined me and wrapped me in his arms. "You're a great guy Hiro."

"Thank you. You're a great fiancé and big brother."

"Love you."

"Love you too."

"Where is this 'client' of yours?"

"They said they'd be here soon. Calm your tits."

"Hmph. I don't know about you, but I actually had plans tonight."

"Banging some random drunk from a dive bar constitutes as 'plans' these days?"

Blair drew and cocked her Cutlass. "You wanna die Benny?"

Benny drew his P220 Sport and aimed it at her. "Let's go little Miss Chinglish."

"Will you two please shut up?" I pinch the bridge of my nose in frustration. "It's a never ending thing between you two. I swear you're like an old married couple."

They glared at each other, then at me. "Sorry, Hannibal."

"Yea, sorry."

They put their guns away and returned to their previous positions. "Blair's right though, where is this mystery client of yours? You know I don't like to be kept waiting." As if on cue, a figure in a red cape appears out of nowhere. They keep their head down so the shadow that their hood is casting conceals their identity. "I'm assuming you're our client."

"If you're from Yama's gang then yes, I am."

"Nice costume, out playing superhero or something?"

Our mystery client put a sword to Blair's throat. The second they did, Benny drew his gun and my arm went up in front of him. "I always said your mouth would get you into trouble Blair." The panicked look on her face told me that she wasn't in the mood for an 'I told you so'.

"Call off your dog." I lowered Benny's gun and our…interesting client lowered their sword. Blair took a few steps back, and glared at me.

"So…what can we do for you?"

"I need you for a job."

"Oh? And what do we get if we accept?" The figure held out a slip of paper, I walked over and took it.

"What's it say?"

"A very generous amount. This job must be serious."

"I need some people out of the way. I can't do it alone so I'm forced to look for some outside assistance."

"What do you need us to do?" Blair asked crossing her arms.

"Help me eliminate some competition. I'll provide the tools and teach you how to use them."

I looked at Benny and Blair before nodding. "Alright. We're in. What about the money?"

The figure turned away from us. "Half now. Half when it's over." They dropped a duffle bag out of their cloak. I assume that's our advanced payment. "We meet here in three days for training at this time. Do NOT be late." Suddenly a cloud of smoke billowed up from bellow the figure, when the smoke cleared, the figure was gone.

"This is gonna be an interesting job."

"Idiots. They have no idea what they're getting into. With any luck, they'll get taken out by someone in Hiro's little group of friends. If not, I'll just kill them myself. And it's all for you my dear Tadashi." I land on the roof of my parent's apartment building and finally take a breath. I take off my hood and the Death Gun mask that I bought recently. "This mask really comes in handy, the voice modifier was a great addition." Hopefully those idiots I just paid off will be of some use and this plan won't have too many setbacks.

I sneak into my room through my window and get to work on mods for the gear I was making. Sharper blades, smarter gas use, simpler controls for those buffoons, can't do much with the harnesses. Everything is essentially being overhauled. Even if they are useless, I can still use them as scapegoats.

She's been acting weird since she was released. I know no one can just get released from almost a 2 year stint in jail with a brief layover in a psych ward and be okay but this…is just weird. She acts the same when mom and dad are around but she's usually hold up in her room with the door shut. "Damn it sis what the hell is with you?"

I roll out of bed and head for the kitchen. I stop and look at her door, its shut as always. I grab a drink and a snack before going back to my room. I shut my door and see that my phone is lit up.

"The only one that could be texting me at this hour is…" I flop down on my bed and unlock my phone.

 _"_ _Hey sleepy head. You awake?"_

 _"_ _Yea, I'm up."_

 _"_ _Put down the honey bun."_ I look at my phone, honey bun in hand, mouth agape.

 _"_ _Fuck, how did you know?"_

 _"_ _If you're up at this hour, you're snacking…and worrying. What's the matter?"_

 _"_ _You can read me like a book."_

 _"_ _I'm your best friend you idiot. Of course I can, spill."_

 _"_ _I'm…worried…"_

 _"_ _About your sister."_

 _"_ _Yea…"_

 _"_ _She hasn't been the same since she got out and you're worried about her."_

 _"_ _Again, reading me like a book."_

 _"_ _Want my advice?"_

 _"_ _No I want to ask you out. -_-"_ Okay that last text wasn't a complete lie.

 _"_ _Well I appreciate the offer but is this really the time for that?"_

 _"_ _*sigh* Shut up, smart ass."_

 _"_ _Lol, okay look, I know this is serious. I'm sorry your sister is being so distant and weird. I have a couple of suggestions. One: Talk to her, see if she's just having a hard time adjusting. You never know, maybe she needs someone to talk to. Two: Keep an eye on her, just watch for any behavior that's weirder than her current behavior."_

 _"_ _Those are actually helpful tips. It's nice to see that you can pull your head out of your ass and help me."_

 _"_ _Now whose head is up whose ass? Brown noser."_

 _"_ _Oh please, you love having your ego stroked."_

 _"_ _As well as other things ;)"_ I couldn't help but blush. Fucking idiot has no clue what he's doing to me.

 _"_ _Dude…"_

 _"_ _Oh shut up, you love me."_ Not that far off target. _"Oh, that reminds me, are you still gonna spend the weekend with me at my house?"_

 _"_ _Yea, I need a break from the house. I'll set up some cameras before I get dropped off tomorrow night though."_

 _"_ _Don't get busted. Gonna be hard to explain why you're setting up surveillance equipment in your sister's room."_

 _"_ _Got that right. Thanks…I appreciate it."_

 _"_ _You know I'm here for you."_ I smirk at my phone like a love struck idiot. _"Put it down."_ FUCKING HELL!

 _"_ _-_- I hate you so much right now."_

 _"_ _Bullshit."_

 _"_ _Damn your psychic powers."_

 _"_ _Maybe they'll come in handy one day."_

 _"_ _Not for me when I want a honey bun at 3 in the morning apparently."_

 _"_ _Lol, nope not at all. You should rest that pretty little head of yours."_

 _"_ _Yea…thanks again. See you tonight."_

 _"_ _Aw yea. Night."_

 _"_ _Night."_ I lock my phone and relax into my bed. "Damn that Mateo." I look down at the bulge in my pants that his little comment caused and groan. "Fucking hell…oh well. It'll go away on its own." That guy really knows how to distract me…in the best way possible. It's a shame he's straight…and has a girlfriend. "Oh well…" I grab my headphones and plug them into my phone. "Time to zone out for the night." I go to my Starset playlist and try to get some sleep.


	3. Dark on Me

Chapter Three: Dark on Me

"Hiro, please just talk to me."

"About what?"

"You've been shutting yourself off ever since we found out it was Mika who was here. You've been paranoid and distant! I want my fiancé, not this…paranoid weirdo who doesn't trust me!"

"Paranoid weirdo?"

"Yes, Hiro! All you've done is mutter about Mika, fiddle with our gear, spend time at the shooting range, and spar with Go Go…I hardly see you anymore…I want my best friend back."

"Look…Tadashi, I know you're worried about me but I'm fine. I'm just…"

"Just what?"

"…you wouldn't get it."

"Hiro…seriously after all these years, you don't trust me? I know you better than you know yourself. I would understand what you're feeling if you'd just tell me!"

"You know what Tadashi?" I pick up my coat and keys. "I'm leaving."

"Where the hell are you going?"

I open the door and turn to look at him. "To stay with Go Go and Honey Lemon." I slam the door and make my way down to my car. As I'm about to pull away I look up at our apartment window and see him looking down at me…the heartbroken look on his face..."Damn it." I pull off and drive towards Go Go and Honey Lemon's apartment.

"Damn it Hiro…why didn't you just tell me what was bugging you? You tell me everything…" I sit down on the edge of the bed and rest my face in my hands. "He's so stubborn…I guess I'll give him his space…I don't know why he's acting like this though." I let out an exasperated sigh and try to fight back my tears.

He's been acting weird for two weeks. Ever since we found out it was Mika that was here, he's been almost obsessed with honing his skills and making sure he's ready for anything. We called the police and showed them our evidence and when they went to Mika's home, they didn't toss her back in the slammer because her parents vouched for her being home. They said they went in to check on her at the time we were heading back from the airport and said she spoke to them. She was allegedly at her desk drawing something. The cops had to let her go because, even though we had evidence, they had to try and figure out how she could be in our apartment as well as home at the same time.

After that…with the knowledge that she was still out and about, Hiro threw himself into training. When he's not at work, he's at the gun range, at the gym with Go Go or some poor soul who wants to spar, or in the living room tinkering with our gear. I've seen his targets from the range and it honestly looks like he only fired one bullet because there's usually only one hole…dead center. I've also seen his fights from the gym. He's brutal, the only people that can readily keep up with him are me and Go Go. I've even seen the modifications to our gear in action.

"It's like that idiot is gearing up for war…" I feel something nudging my leg, I look down to see Mochi. He looks up at me and meows. "I forgot you were here." I pick him up and set him on my lap. "Aunt Cass is still having the place remodeled so you gotta stay with us for a bit longer." He let out a lower pitched meow that, admittedly, sounded annoyed. "Assuming that's not why you're in my lap right now. I know…you're trying to comfort me. I appreciate it." He rubs his head against my stomach and starts purring. I hear my phone ring. "That's Honey Lemon's ringtone." I grab my phone from the nightstand and answer it. "Hello?"

 _"_ _He's here."_

I breathe a sigh of relief. "Good."

 _"_ _What happened Tadashi?"_

"We…had a fight. I was getting sick of him being so…"

 _"_ _Distant?"_

"Yea…" I run my hand through my hair and sigh. "He's been spending so much time away from me…and when he's here, he's so consumed by his work that he hardly notices me. In the last two weeks, the most we've done physically is kiss in the morning. He doesn't even come to bed with me!"

I hear here gasp over the phone. _"You two always sleep together."_

"We…we still do it's just when I get into bed, he's still working on something. And when he does get into bed, he doesn't cuddle with me like he usually does. He's usually up before me too…"

 _"_ _Tadashi…I'm sorry. I'll talk to him okay? I'll keep you updated on how he's doing. But…are you gonna be okay? I could send Wasabi and Fred over if you want."_

"I'll be okay." I look down and smile bitterly. "I have our hairy baby remember? Just…take care of him okay?"

 _"_ _Of course."_

"I'll talk to you in the morning okay?"

 _"_ _Alright. Try and get some rest."_

"Tell him…tell him I love him."

 _"_ _I will…"_

"Thank you. Night."

 _"_ _Night."_

"He just doesn't understand!"

"And why might that be?" Silence. "I asked a question Hamada."

"Because…I didn't try to explain…"

"Bingo. You just stormed out and came here."

"But I'm doing this to protect him. To protect all of us! Mika's just…out there. She's not in jail or in custody…"

"And you're worried. Understandably so. But think about it from his point of view. He-"

"I don't care! He can be mad at me all he wants, but when this is all over and done with, he'll thank me." He gets up and storms off towards the guest room, closing the door behind him.

"Ugh." I groan, flopping down onto the couch.

"I'm assuming that didn't go well."

"Nope. Still being a stubborn little shit. What about Tadashi?" She lifts my feet up and sits in the spot where they were just lying.

"Well…he's upset. Hiro's been distant and constantly working on his shooting skills, tinkering with our gear, and sparring with you. Tadashi just wants his fiancé back." She started rubbing my feet midway through her little spiel and it almost distracted me from what she was saying.

"I get it…What Tadashi doesn't know is that Hiro's doing this…out of fear. He's scared that something is going to happen and wants to be as ready as possible. I don't know if Tadashi realizes it yet, but Hiro does this a lot."

"Elaborate on that."

"Hiro has this…weird fear reflex. He throws himself into whatever he can throw himself into. In this case…" I turn and look at our freshly modified gear that Hiro brought with him. "It's our gear, honing his combat skills, and working on his aim." I sigh in content at the feeling of tension leaving my feet. "That feels good."

"I see…Should we tell Tadashi? Or should we let him figure it out?"

I sigh, bringing my hands up and resting them behind my head. "I know we hate seeing them fight or upset but I think we need to let them work this out on their own."

"Are you sure?"

I sit up and place my hand on her cheek. "I know you want to help them. In all honesty, I want to kick down that door and drag that dumbass back to his apartment so they can work things out…"

"But?"

"They need to work this out. Hiro needs to pull his head out of his ass and talk to Tadashi."

"So…you think Tadashi would understand if they talk?"

"Yea. Tadashi's far from stupid so he can comprehend what Hiro needs to say, but comprehension isn't the issue."

"His reaction is."

"Bingo."

"I think we both can agree that he'd probably bop Hiro on the head after finding out why he went off the deep end but he wouldn't be mad for too long. He'd just be happy to have the love of his life back."

We fell into a contemplative silence for a few seconds. "Give it a week?"

"Yup."

"Then kick him out and tell him to go fix things with Tadashi?"

"Yup."

"Glad to see we're on the same page." I kissed her gently then smiled when I pulled away. "Hungry?"

"Starving."

"Want me to make you something?"

She kissed me and smiled. "If it's not too much trouble."

"No trouble at all." I get up and walk into the kitchen to make my Latina beauty something to eat.

"Just a couple more tweaks and it'll be ready." I hear a knock on the door. "Come in."

I hear light footfalls coming towards me. "Hungry?"

"Yea, a little." Honey Lemon sets down a plate of food on the desk I was sitting at.

"How's it coming?"

"Almost done. Just gotta test it. I'll do that tomorrow."

She kneeled down next to me and started rubbing my back. "It's okay."

"What?" I look at her for the first time since she entered the room and see she has a slightly bitter smile on her face. She's looking away from me but I can tell she knows what my facial expression is.

"It's okay to be scared. But this isn't the way to deal with it." She stands up and starts to walk out of the room. She stops in the doorway and turns her head a bit to look at me over her shoulder. "Tadashi said he loves you." She says it in a soft, caring voice…it resonates within me. The next thing I hear is the door being shut.

"Fucking hell…" I glare slightly at the plate of steaming food next to me. "It's…the sautéed chicken that Tadashi made…That's just cruel." I reluctantly eat it and then flop down onto the bed.

"Will you understand if I tell you? Will you understand that your little brother…your fiancé…your love…is scared?" I don't like showing weakness…even after all this time…I don't want him to see this side of me. I love him but…I hate being coddled when I show fear. Yes, I'm scared. I admit it. I don't want to be. I wasn't scared back then, I was pissed, and I was ready to do whatever it took to stop her.

"But why is it different now?" I place my hand on my forehead and run my fingers through my hair. Why is this time so different? Is it because I can see more clearly? Is it…because I have more to protect? Is it…is it because our bond is stronger than it was when this whole mess started?

I look down at my locket and start to tear up a bit. I take it off and open it, the pictures inside bring back memories of happier times…I love him. I really do. "Tadashi…" I take out my phone and go to my messages. I type up a quick text to him telling him I love him and seconds later, I get one saying he loves me too. I make a plan to spend a couple of days here with Go Go and Honey Lemon then go home…talk things out with him.

"Hello?"

 _"_ _Mateo?"_

"This is he. What's up Johnny boy?"

 _"_ _Are you at home?"_

"Where else would I be?"

 _"_ _Let's see, my house, Leon's house, Ramon's house, Stacy's house-"_

"Okay, okay. I'm home. Why?"

 _"_ _Open your window."_

"What? Why?"

 _"_ _Just do it!"_

"Okay, okay. Geeze." I set my phone down and open my window just in time for that dunderhead to knock me to the ground. "Ow, ow, owwww. You could have just told me you were coming over!" He was lying flat against my chest then propped himself up so his palms were flat on my chest. "And that reminds me, when am I gonna get my gear from you?"

"Sorry! I rushed over because I finally pulled the footage from my cameras and I needed to talk!" Still straddling me, he reached into his book bag and pulled out his laptop. "And your gear is in the works, I'm still saving up to get some supplies to build it."

I sit up and rest my weight on my elbows. "So what's so devastating that you have no time to make a smooth landing or text me before you come over?"

He set his laptop down to my left next to my desk chair. "This." A video feed of his sister started playing. It showed her setting up some…projector that made it look like she was sleeping in bed. She grabbed the cloak on the back of her chair and something else from under her desk before propelling out of her window with her gear.

"Whoa…did she just…Where is she going?"

"I have no idea. But we're going to follow her."

"Come again?"

He took hold of my shoulders and stared down at me through his glasses. "We're going to follow her. Next time she sneaks out, we're following her."

"Umm, that sounds fun and all, but in case you haven't noticed, I'm sorta challenged in one area."

"Oh that's okay Mateo, I know you're stupid."

I scowl at him but all he does is smirk and push his glasses up on his nose. "I meant the gear you smart ass."

"I have a way around that."

"Don't tell me you're going carry me bridal style."

"Nah. You're too heavy."

"Hurtful."

"Shush. You can ride on my back."

"Ugh, fine. What happens if we find something? Police? Parents?"

"I'll…I'll think of something." He looks downcast. Fuck, the last thing I want is for him to be sad.

"Hey…" I reach up and cup his cheek. "Stop with the sad face okay? Not cool. I know this is a hard thing to deal with but…we'll get through it." His expression doesn't change much. "Remember all the shit we've gotten through together?"

"Yea…"

"Who beat the crap out of those bullies for you back in sixth grade?"

"You did."

"Who persuaded the principal to NOT expel me on the spot for beating up said bullies?"

"I did." He started to perk up.

"Who have been best friends from that day on?"

"We have."

"And who has pulled each other out of shitty situations at every turn since then?"

"We have."

"And who knows me better than I know myself?"

"I do…" By this point he was smiling and blushing while fiddling with his glasses like he always does.

"You're damn right."

"Thanks Teo. I needed that."

"Anytime bud." I look down and see he's still straddling my hips but I elect to not ruin the moment by asking him to move.

"So…can you come over tomorrow and spend the night? I think she might be sneaking out tomorrow."

"Sure. Are you going to escort me, my handsome prince?"

"You got legs don't cha?"

"Rude." I playfully punch him in the arm.

"Yea, I'll come get you at…2:30? Sound good to you?"

"Yea. Mom was going to make me come grocery shopping, just so I can carry the bags, around noon so I should be back by 2:00."

"Roger that. Bring your masks and those capes we used for Halloween."

"The black hooded capes and the ANBU masks?"

"Yup."

"Alright. Can do."

He threw his arms around me, squeezing me tight. "Thank you so much. I appreciate it."

I hugged him back with one arm, making sure I didn't lose my balance. "No problem Johnny-boy. Now do me a favor."

"Yea?"

"Can you get off of me? You've been sitting on my lap since you crashed into me." He scampered up and promptly fell flat on his ass. His glasses almost fell off of his face and his gear was making a lot of noise.

"S-SORRY! I didn't know I was- uh…sorry…" He looked down at his lap and started blushing.

"Ugh, stop stammering. You're fine." I helped him up and dusted him off. "Has your gear always been that noisy?"

"I guess…I'm used to it." I fix his glasses and smile at him. "Thanks. I should get back." He puts away his laptop and makes sure he's not leaving anything else.

"Text me when you get back so I know you got back without crashing into a building, you klutz." He glared at me before pulling me into another quick hug.

"I will. See you tomorrow." He climbed out of the window and launched off into the night.

I sigh to myself before chuckling. "He's such and idiot." I look over at the picture of us from our eighth grade graduation. "But he's my idiot."

"Thanks for dinner Mr. and Mrs. Inoue!"

"Thanks mom, it was delicious."

"You're welcome sweetie, you too Mateo.

"Thanks for the food, dear." Dad got up and kissed mom on the cheek before going over to the sink to wash dishes.

"It was great mom. I'll be in my room working on a painting if anyone needs me." Mateo and I glanced at each other as Mika got up, hugged mom and dad, and then went to her room.

"Do you need any help with the dishes Mr. Inoue?"

"Hmm? Oh no, Mateo you're a guest here. Besides I always handle them, it's no trouble. Thank you though." Dad smiled fondly at him before returning his attention to the dishes. Mom got up and kissed him on the cheek.

"Mateo, you and Jonathan enjoy the evening. You're young, don't worry about doing the dishes. Especially while you're spending time with a good friend."

Mateo laughed a bit. "Alright Mrs. Inoue. Thanks for welcoming me into your home."

"Dude, you act like you've never been here before." I playfully elbowed him. "C'mon, those zombies aren't gonna kill themselves." I took his hand, ignoring the butterflies in my stomach, and guided him towards my room. Once the door was shut, I breathed a sigh of relief. "Now we wait."

"How long?"

"The feed shows her sneaking out an hour after our parents fall asleep. So at eleven, we follow her."

"What if she leaves before then?"

"I have her window armed with an infrared trip wire. So the second she leaves, my phone will buzz." I let go of his hand, which I honestly forgot I was holding, and pulled out my phone to show him. "See, this is a micro-camera I placed just outside her window and the moment that beam is broken, I'll know."

"Alright so what do we do to kill time?"

"What we usually do. Kill zombies, watch anime, an-"

"Can we work on my gear?" He asked excitedly grabbing my shoulders.

"I don't have the supplies remember? Unless you want to be my sugar daddy and fund me."

"Wouldn't that imply you doing 'special' favors for me?" He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively, causing me to blush and fiddle with my glasses. "Mateo 1: Jon-Jon 0."

"You know I hate that name."

He poked my forehead and smiled at me. "But that's what makes it fun."

I playfully slap away his hand. "Shut it. Just…get your controller."

"Ugh what the hell am I supposed to do now? Ya know, you're being a terrible host." I look down at my sleeping best friend, who is resting his head on my thigh. He passed out while we were watching the director's cut of all of the Resident Evil movies. "Well…you made it to the end of Afterlife." I ran my fingers through his hair and smiled. "You dolt. Oh well…can't be helped."

His parents had come in a couple of hours ago to say good night and since then we had been a bit on edge, waiting for Mika to sneak out. We lulled ourselves into…well…this, and the idiot ended up falling asleep. I look over at the clock and see that it's 2:46. "Why hasn't she-" Almost as if on cue, Jonathan's phone started vibrating. "Fuck! Jon-Jon wake up!"

I shake him awake and he sits up looking confused. "What? What's happening? Is Alice in trouble?" I reach into my bag and toss him a cloak and a mask. "She's on the move. Get your gear on! Hurry!"

"R-right!"

"How do you know where she is?"

"I put a tracer in her cloak when she went to the bathroom."

"Smart. Your phone says she's…she's right below us!"

"Shhhh! Keep your voice down." He set us down on top of a building overlooking an alley.

"She's not alone. Wait…are those three…"

"Wearing gear too?" He finished my sentence for me.

"Looks like it. Mika must have made them. But why?"

I see them about to launch up towards us and gasp. "Get down." I push his head down so all that can be seen is our cloaks. Hopefully they blend in well enough to not get spotted. I hear the sound of four people whizzing by and wait another five seconds before looking up. "Get up. They're heading that way." I point towards the almost invisible gas trails they were leaving behind.

"Alright. Hop on."

"Right." I climb onto his back and we're off, tailing them at a safe distance, making sure that any sound we make is far enough out of earshot so we don't get caught. "Did you catch a look at the people she was with?"

"I saw the girl and the guy that looks like the leader in the leather jacket."

"Well…" I pointed at the people ahead of us as I spoke. "The fat, bald guy up there is Benny Tarantino, and no, not like the director. The girl is Blair Truman. And the guy directly behind Mika is Hannibal Roy Smith. They're all part of Yama's gang. They handle the more…violent….portion of the organization"

"How do you know all this?"

"My cousin works for the San Fransokyo Police Department remember? You met him at that cook out when we were in grade school, and he's been at my house a few times when yo- look that's not the point. The point is that those three are bad news."

"Then…why is sis with them?"

"Looks like she's leading the charge. They're stopping! Swing around to the building diagonal from them."

"Got it." We landed and took up a spot at the corner of the building. "Here." He passed me a pair of binoculars before grabbing a pair for himself.

I lifted up my mask before looking around. "Where are we?"

"No clue. Some apartment complex in a decent neighborhood that's for sure."

I spot Mika and she's peering into a window. She turns to look back at the others and for the first time I can tell that she's wearing a mask. "Hmph, your sister is parading around as Death Gun. WAIT! Look at Hannibal, he's got a gun!"

"What?"

"Under his left arm, I think that's a…fuck."

"What model?"

"FN Five Seven…that's a no nonsense gun. I'm willing to bet he's packing some serious ammunition in that magazine."

"The other two have guns too."

I look over at Blair and Benny and see that Blair is carrying two Berettas that look like the Cutlasses from Black Lagoon and Benny is carrying a P220 Sport. "Okay, those two aren't packing such heavy weapons but Blair has two guns and Benny has one."

"What do we do?"

"This is your plan dude, but I suggest we call the cops."

"R-right."

"You guys ready?"

"Yea, we're all geared up. Ready for a test run."

"Hiro, did you make it lighter? I feel like I can move more easily."

"Yea, I broke down most of the gear and used sturdy but light metals. Don't get tossed around though, this gear isn't meant to take huge spills."

"Copy that. Let's get going." We were about to leave for our test run but the lights suddenly cut off. Go Go and I looked at Honey Lemon, who was closest to the light switch, but she waved her hands defensively. "Is the entire block out?" I look out of the living room window and see that the rest of the buildings have power.

"That's weird."

"Yea…" I go towards the kitchen to get a flashlight but I'm stopped when I see a few small pellets rolling across the floor. My eyes widened. "SHE'S HERE!" The last things I saw were the looks of terror on Go Go and Honey Lemon's faces before the apartment filled with smoke.

"Go after the girls."

"Right."

I drew my blades and made my way out of the smoke. I wasn't out of the smoke a full two seconds before someone in a cloak, blades drawn, came charging at me. I got my guard up in time, but the second our blades clashed, I felt a knee in my stomach. I toppled back into the wall. Not soon after I heard a wail of pain and some girl came flying out of the smoke, followed my Go Go who was cracking her knuckles.

"You picked the wrong house to raid, bitch." The woman regained her footing and I saw her reaching for something.

"GO GO!" Without even hesitating, Go Go charged the woman and tackled her into the wall. Two Berettas clattered across the floor and came to a halt in front of me. Before I could make a grab for them I was being kicked out of the window behind me.

Everything went quiet. Things were happening in slow motion. The glass falling around me, the smoke billowing out of the broken window, the building fading away from me…it all happened so fast. I snapped back into reality and let my training take over. The same hooded figure leapt through the window and was diving after me. They started to spin like a top then stuck their blades out.

'Remember your training. You know how to counter this.' I corrected myself and spun the opposite way they were and when our blades collided, theirs shattered. I smirked a bit before launching my hooks into the building. I used the momentum from my spin to add power to my next move, a firm spinning roundhouse to their ribs. They tumbled to the ground but I landed safely.

I wasted no time when I landed. As soon as my foot touched the ground, I rocketed towards them. They were ready. They caught me by my wrists and made me release my blades. "Alright, so you wanna fight? BRING IT ON, MIKA! I'VE BEEN WAITING TO SETTLE THIS!" I kicked her away from me and got into my fighting stance. "Come."

I heard sirens blaring in the distance, they were getting closer. We both looked down the street and saw flashing lights. "Hmph, as much as I would love to settle things here and now, it is not time yet." Her cloak started to shift an before I knew it, a bright flash followed by a loud bang disoriented me.

I swayed from side to side, holding my ear, trying to regain my composure. "Fucking hell…wait…the girls!" I launch back up towards their apartment and when I got inside, I see the aftermath of an intense struggle. Broken furniture, holes and slash marks in the walls, but…no Go Go or Honey Lemon. "No…Go Go…she-she's too strong to just…DAMN IT!" I drop to my knees as I start panting. "How could this happen…all my training…all my preparation…it was all for nothing." I hear glass crunching behind me and I immediately readied my blades.

"Whoa! Chill! We're not with them!" The two new comers removed their hoods and masks but I was still on edge. "I'm Mateo and this is Jonathan…Mika's brother."

"Brother?"

"Yea…"

I put my blades away. "I'm assuming you two called the cops."

"Yea. We…we want to help. We know the people she was with. But the thing is..."

"What is it? Spit it out!"

"I got this." Mateo put his hand on Jonathan's shoulder. "We only saw Mika leave with two people. That wouldn't be an issue if it weren't for the fact that she showed up here with three others."

"No…That means…" I pulled out my phone and called Tadashi.

"Hiro?"

"Are you okay?"

 _"_ _Yea…what's-"_

"Mika took Go Go and Honey Lemon. There was one other person who might be after you, Wasabi and Fred, or Aunt Cass."

 _"_ _Oh God…"_

"Hannibal Roy Smith."

"From…Yama's…TADASHI! HE'S COMING FOR YOU! I'm on my way! Please, stay safe. I love you."

 _"_ _I love you too…"_

I ended the call and made my way past Mateo and Jonathan. "You two." They gawked at me for a second. "We're going."

"Alright."

"Wait…Mateo are you sure we should?"

"Okay look, you stay here and talk to the police okay?"

"What about you?"

He pointed over his shoulder at me. "This guy's a powerhouse. And I'm no pushover myself." He pulled him in for a hug before joining me. "I'll be fine."

"Alright, let's go." Mateo got on my back and I launched off at top speed. "Tadashi…please be okay…"

"I'm ready for whoever's on their way. I refuse to let that psychopath take me." I sink down further into the bathtub, letting Mochi curl into me more. "You're scared too? It's okay…I won't let her hurt you either."

It's quiet. I listen for…anything. Footsteps, sirens, the door unlocking, a window shattering. It's quiet for a while…The silence is maddening. I clutch my gun a bit tighter…then I hear it. I hear a glass break in the kitchen. Doors start opening. Then I hear footfalls coming down the hall. They're in the bedroom…silence again. I doubt they think I'm not home. Suddenly, bullets start to rip through the door, striking the wall above the tub. I blindly aim over the side of the tub and fire back, assuming that whoever is shooting, is stupid enough to stand in front of the door.

I get off 5 shots before I hear a pained groan. "Nailed 'em." I quickly climb out of the tub and take cover against the wall next to the door. I look through a bullet hole and see someone clutching their shoulder, their gun is under the dresser so I decide to make my move. I emerged from the bathroom aiming at the wounded assailant bleeding on my bedroom floor.

"Hannibal, right?" No response, he just clutched his wounded shoulder. "Flinch and I'll finish you."

"Hmph, you, the goody-goody Hamada…would finish me? Laughable."

I was about to reply when I heard sirens and the door fly open. "Tadashi? Tadashi?! Where are you?!"

"Bedroom. I'm okay."

He rushed into the room followed by two police officers and someone I had never seen before. He leapt into my arms, almost knocking me down in the process. He tightened his grip on me, I gladly reciprocated. I was glad he was okay, aside from some cuts and bruises. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay. Don't worry about that now." I rubbed the back of his head gently. "Are you okay?" He nodded into my shoulder. I looked up and saw the police tending to Hannibal's wounded shoulder as the paramedics rushed in.

"They…they got Go Go and Honey Lemon."

Shit. "We'll find them. I swear to you we will." I squeezed him tighter when I felt a small sob bubble up from inside him.

"Umm…"

"Oh…and you are?" I turn my attention to the stranger wearing a black cloak.

"Oh. That's Mateo, he and…Mika's brother…were there at the apartment. They called the police and told me who was there."

"Is that correct, son?" An officer spoke up.

"Yes sir. I know for a fact that Hannibal wasn't working alone. He has no reason to go after Tadashi and Hiro unless he was being paid off. His associates are somewhere with Mika Inoue and their captives, shit…what were their names again?"

"Go Go Tomago and Honey Lemon." Hiro spoke.

"Right."

"How do you know this, son?"

"Well…Mika's younger brother and I were tailing her. He has a tracer on her so if you talk to him, he can probably tell you where she is."

"How do you know it's Mika? Did you see her face?"

"No…but we followed her from her home. Also, Jonathan, her brother, managed to slip a tracer into her cloak. How would we do that if it wasn't her?" Kid's got a point.

"Also, she spoke to me when we were fighting. She said she'd want to settle this but that it wasn't time yet."

"She's going to try and get everyone out of the way before coming for me or she's going to wait to come after me…"

"She's not taking anyone else!"

"Calm down Mr. Hamada. We'll put out an APB for Mika and her cohorts."

"We're going to help you search."

He looked at Hiro sternly. "Leave this to the police. If what this young man is saying yields truth, then this should be over tonight."

"It won't be." Hiro mumbled under his breath.

The officer looked at him again and was about to speak when I cut him off. "I'll talk to him. Thank you."

"Here's my number. We'll be in touch." The officers started questioning Hannibal but he was as tightlipped as ever. He was eventually carted away by the EMTs.

I looked around at the door and the blood stain on the carpet before sighing. "You okay with moving in with Fred and Wasabi for a bit?"

"It's fine with me. So long as everyone is safe while we look for Go Go and Honey Lemon."

"Alright." I looked at the officer who was talking to a crime scene investigator. "Excuse me." They turned to face me, eyebrows raised, indicating they were listening. "Can we take some things with us while you guys investigate our apartment?"

"Afraid not Mr. Hamada. Sorry about that. We'll also need to take you down to the station. You too Mateo."

"How do you know my…let me guess, Gabe?"

"You got it. Your cousin's a great officer."

"Yea, yea, yea. He never shuts up about all the praise he gets. Wait, what about-"

"Jonathan, his parents, and your parents will be at the station too."

"Okay, good. That's a relief."

We were given a ride to the station and as soon as we walked in, we were hit with a collection of sighs of relief, names being exclaimed, and a plethora of unidentifiable questions. The first person on their feet to hug me was Jonathan surprisingly. He sounded like he was going to cry so I just held him tight, letting him know I was okay. My parents weren't far behind him and hugged us both…And shortly after I was getting an earful for sneaking out. Thankfully the cop who gave us a ride said he had some questions for me. My dad kind of had to come with me, being my lawyer and all that.

After what felt like an eternity, we were finally sent back to the lobby. I sat down and relished the chance to finally rest. As soon as I let out a sigh of relief I felt Jonathan lean his head on my shoulder.

"Glad you're okay."

"You too, knucklehead. How are you umm…holding up?"

"I'm…I don't know. This is…so…"

"Shhh…it's okay." I put my arm around him and rubbed his shoulder.

"I still can't believe this…She's not…she was never like this growing up."

"Honey, I know this is hard" His mom interjected. "…It's hard on everyone here. We'll…get through this somehow."

"You're mother's right. I hate to say it but…."

"We have to let her go to jail again don't we?" Damn it, the way Jonathan's voice broke made me feel like my heart was in a vice.

"Yes, son…we do."

He clutched my shirt and buried his face in my chest. His parents reached out for him but I held up my hand and smiled reassuringly. I just let him rest on top of me. He needed me to be strong for him right now.

"Excuse us." I looked up to see Hiro and Tadashi standing in front of us.

"We need to talk about somethings." Hiro said while tugging on the bandages around his wrist, he had been patched up by a nurse at the station.

"Excuse him, he's a bit…on edge to say the least." Tadashi extended his hand towards my and Jonathan's parents. "Tadashi Hamada, this is Hiro, my fiancé." They all shook hands and looked around awkwardly. "We need to discuss some…things regarding this situation."

"We need your complete cooperation here. We know Mika is your daughter but we need her brought in." Hiro stated flatly.

"We understand." Jonathan's father looked over at him and took a second to compose himself. "We want our daughter to be brought in as well…we wish for the safe return of your friends." His wife took his hand and nodded at him. He looked back at Hiro and Tadashi. "You have our full cooperation."

"Good. We appreciate it."

"We'd like to help in any way we can as well."

"Thank you Mrs. Ramirez."

The six of them continued to talk and discuss investigation efforts. I stopped listening, choosing instead to focus on my best friend. He was still resting on my chest with a blank expression on his face. I gently squeezed him and when he looked up at me, I nodded my head towards the hallway. He nodded back at me before getting up.

"We're gonna get some water." Our parents nodded then Jonathan led me into the hallway. We kept walking until we hit the water fountain, but neither of us got a drink. Jonathan just stood there with his back to me. "Jonathan?" He started trembling.

"Why…why did she have to do this?"

"Jon-Jon…"

"She…she gave me that nickname." Fuck, I just stepped on a nonnegotiable landmine. I hesitantly step forward and reach out for him. He whips around and starts sobbing into my chest. Admittedly he catches me off guard but I quickly recover.

I didn't say anything, I just stood there holding him while he sobbed. I can't say I understand how he feels. I am an only child after all, so all I can do is try and empathize with him. I try calming him down by doing what I always do when he's upset: I rub his back while running my fingers through his hair. He slowly starts sinking to the floor and, of course, I don't let go. He's still sobbing pretty hard…I'm so sorry this has to happen to you and your family. You're such good people.

Out of habit, I kiss him on the temple. I usually do it for my girlfriend when she's upset and I've done it for him in extreme cases. It usually works. "Shhh…it's okay. I know this is hard, I can't imagine what you and your parents are going through…but I'm here. Always have been, always will be. I'm not going anywhere."

"Mateo…" He looks up at me with tears still streaming down his face. I take off his glasses and use my thumb to wipe away his tears. He starts blushing and looks down at his lap.

"That's adorable."

"What is?"

I tilt his chin up so he's looking at me. "The way you get all shy when I show you how much I care. You're blushing right now. Aaaand…" I looked down at his glasses that I had tucked into my shirt. "I have your security blanket."

"So?"

"Unfortunately, you can't fiddle with your glasses like you do when you're nervous."

"What are you getting at? Wait…you called me adorable."

"I did." He looked at me, trying to decipher what I was getting at. 'What is he getting at? What is he trying to do?' In all honesty, I have no idea anymore. It started off trying to make this fool feel better but now…I don't know.

I see his eyes darting back and forth, he's thinking. He does that way too much. "You think too much."

"I do…"

"Sometimes…you just need to-"

"Act." My heart started beating faster and blood began rushing to my head. Everything started to slow down and before I knew what was happening, he started leaning forward. I instinctively closed my eyes and waited. I felt his lips press against mine and, honestly, I felt a spark. I had to control myself. As much as I wanted to let my instincts take over, I knew this wasn't the time.

We'd been sitting with our lips pressed together for what felt like an hour and he'd yet to move. I realized that Jonathan had never kissed anyone before and probably didn't know what to do. I started moving my lips and started to guide his hands towards my hips but he decided to drape them around my neck instead. He caught on pretty quick, his fingers started running through my hair and gently massaging my scalp. My hand, still on his cheek, cupped the side of his face and began gliding down to his shoulder. As fun as this was, it needed to stop. I gently pushed him away.

"So?"

"…so…what?"

"How was your first kiss?"

"Enchanting."

"Wasn't half bad for me either." He flicked my ear and scowled at me. "Okay fine…in all honesty it was the best kiss I've had in a while."

"Even better than Stacy?"

"Way better. Even though this was your first kiss, once I started moving, you made it…better. The way you played in my hair and let your fingers move around my scalp…it was nice Stacy usually likes it rough, hair pulling, lip biting, that stuff isn't for me to be honest."

"I know…you kinda complain about having a bruised lip a lot."

"Shut up." I chuckled. "So…feeling better?"

"A lot better. He kissed my nose before grinning." It's nice to see him happy…but Stacy is going to kill me. Oh well. I gave Jon-Jon what he needed.

"Glad to hear that. We should get back to our parents." I put his glasses back on his face before helping him up.

"Yea…thank you."

"Anytime."

It's been almost a week and the police still have no leads on where Mika, Blair, and Benny are. Which means no leads on where Go Go and Honey Lemon are. I'm frustrated to say the very least. The police followed the tracer that Mika's brother put on her cloak but it led them to a dumpster that had a cat rummaging around in it for food. Speaking of the police, they still had us under orders to not go out looking for Go Go and Honey Lemon. They even went so far as to have a unit parked outside Fred's mansion. We were still allowed to go to work but only under supervision from officers tasked with keeping an eye on us. Uncle Naes even hired personal security for Aunt Cass just in case Mika plans on snatching anyone aside from Tadashi.

"This is taking too long."

"You sound as chipper as ever."

I glared at Tadashi as he began changing out of his work clothes. "I want to go out there and look."

"I know you do. Everyone living in this house does. But-"

"But we can't take that risk, one of us could get taken or killed, blah, blah, blah. The officers currently sitting in their cruiser read me the riot act a million times already."

"I know that…but I have an idea."

My curiosity was piqued. "That tone…you're planning something illegal, aren't you?"

"I've been looking for breaks in their patrol so we can sneak out."

"Pointing out the obvious here, if you've been doing that-"

"You have too."

"…if WE'VE been doing that, she has too."

"Which means the minute we find a pattern-"

"She will too. Maybe a bit later than us. So if we're gonna sneak out-"

"We need to do it fast."

I took out a map of the city and unfurled it on the bed. Tadashi looked at me with a raised eyebrow, but I shrugged. "Don't judge me. Now, I've crossed out places the police have searched as well as places too small to hide five people. The warehouse district, the docs, the few blocks of buildings slated for demolition, those types of dark and reclusive places."

"Hmmm…I don't think she'd be in the warehouse district. Too obvious. Plus it's too far from here. She'd want to stay somewhere close enough to keep an eye on us but far enough to stay put while the police searched."

"Or she's been on the move. If it were me, I'd hide in places the cops have already checked."

"Good point."

"Also I'd want to hide in a place where my gear could be used…so the docks are out and the warehouse district is out too. It's too cramped there. That leaves…"

"The abandoned buildings. So…now that we've narrowed it down…do you want to sneak out or tell the cops?"

I stop and think. As much as I'd love to race into this headfirst, I can't. I'd like to go search and see if we're right but I'd be taking an unneeded risk…If we have the cops at our disposal…why not use them? "Let the cops know. As much as I'd like to just rush in…this is still just a theory."

"You're sure?"

"Yea. I'm sure…let's also get them to search the docks and the warehouse district just in case. We need them to do it at the same time though, or else there's a chance that they could slip through." Tadashi nodded and was about to go out and get one of the officers assigned to us but they beat us to it.

"You two need to take a look at this."

"Take a look at what?" I asked as I got up to see what was so urgent.

"This was dropped onto the hood of our squad car." They held up a tablet that had a single video on it.

I looked over at Tadashi who looked concerned before pressing play. The video started playing and the first thing that we saw was Mika standing in a dark room, lit by a single hanging light. "Hello my dear Tadashi, did you miss me? I know you did. I'll cut to the chase. Your little friends are safe." The camera panned to the right and, we could see Go Go and Honey Lemon bound to wooden chairs. "For the time being. You know what I want, and if I get him, this will all be over." A sadistic smile graced her features and my blood began to boil. She pulled out a gun and brandished it at the girls. "We wouldn't want these pretty young ladies to end up in the morgue now would we? They're too young to die." She fired a shot directly between them, we could all see them jump and that…is what made me see red. I had to keep my cool, read between the lines. "You have an hour to comply. Leave my dear, sweet Tadashi at the dump. And sweetie…come alone." I listened to the background, I didn't hear any water or boats so the docks were out. The room was…spacious but rundown. Warehouses and abandoned buildings were still an option. Then it clicked.

"Wait! She fired a gun…call into the station and ask about gunfire in the city. Look specifically into the abandoned buildings slated for demolition and the warehouse district."

"Good thinking. I'll get on that." One of the officers pulled out his phone and called up his commanding officer.

"If we can't narrow it down any further than that, we'll need units to drop the hammer on both locations at the same time. It's critical to ensure that they don't slip through our fingers." The officer nodded as his commanding officer answered the phone.

"We want to go with you." Tadashi said.

Before the second officer could interject, I jumped in. "We know the risks. We're well aware of how this could go. I want Tadashi, Fred, and Wasabi to come. Why? Because this is our fight. I want Tadashi in a van with a vest on with me, Fred and Wasabi will be in another van wearing vests as well. They'll be with the warehouse team and we'll be with the building team."

Silence fell over the room, the two officers had furrowed brows and serious expressions on their faces. I heard their commanding officer say something through the phone. "Understood sir." He sighed and I knew that we had gotten our way. "We got the all clear."

"Alright. We need to move, time is of the essence."

"Units in position?"

 _"_ _All units ready to move on your command."_

"Alright." One last sweep of the monitors before I nodded. "Fred, Wasabi, you guys ready?"

 _"_ _Ready."_

"Okay. All units move in." Tadashi held my hand as we watched the monitors. The body cams of the officers were mostly dark with occasional flashes of light and chatter. We waited…the wait was agonizing and I was starting to get impatient.

 _"_ _Warehouse district clear." I breathed a sigh of relief. That meant that-"_

 _"_ _We've found them. Targets located. No sign of Inoue or her associates."_

That's all I needed to hear. I tore out of the unmarked van we were in and launched off towards the building with Tadashi trailing behind me. I found the officers that located Go Go and Honey Lemon in no time. They were trying to undo the chains that bound them to the chairs they were in. We forced ourselves between the officers and used our blades to slice through the locks. They shrugged off their chains and wasted no time roping us into a group hug. They were okay…a bit beaten up, but they were okay.

"You guys really are predictable." The entire room went quiet. "Ya know, for a pair of supposed geniuses, you two are so easy to read." All the officers circled around us, guns aimed into the darkness. "You played right into my hands." That was the last thing I heard before I felt the floor slip out from under us. We were falling. My first instinct was to use my gear to hook onto something and save my friends. I knew Tadashi would have the same mindset.

I can't see anything…I just see dust and smoke. I hear screaming…the officers…Go Go…Honey Lemon…Tadashi…I have to act. I can't just let her win. I fire my hooks towards the ceiling and manage to spot Honey and Go Go. They managed to get into a hallway on the floor below us and, aside from their old injuries and a new coating of dust, they were okay.

"Hiro! Are you okay?"

"Tadashi? Yea, I'm fine." I look around trying to pinpoint where his voice is coming from. It sounds like he's on the ground floor of the building. "Are you okay?"

"Yea…I'm down here with the officers. We need a medic."

"Get Fred and Wasabi on the radio. I'm gonna-" A cloaked figure appeared in front of me. Shadows and dust blocked out most of them but I could see that sadistic smirk…I knew who it was.

"Catch me if you can, little boy." She launched out of a window and I followed close behind her. She wasn't getting away. I was going to end this tonight.

She kept up a sizeable lead for most of the pursuit. Every time I tried to engage her, she countered me and picked up her pace. She must have modified her gear too. She was moving so fast, making sharp turns around corners, and her gas tanks seemed like they were bottomless. She finally stops and reveals herself. She's smiling…why? Doesn't matter, she's going down. Here and now!

"Just a little closer…just a little closer. There!" The little fool races in full speed and I drop out of the way. "With that speed he can't dodge." He flies towards the water and I go for my end game. With him out of the way, Tadashi will have no one to lean on except for me.

I charge after him and just as he turns to face me…I make contact. Crimson droplets decorate the air. Something shiny flies by me, I pay it no mind. The only thing I can focus on is the stunned look on his face. "All that genius, all the high hopes placed on you, all the foresight you claim to have…and you couldn't see this coming. Fool."

My gear snaps me back into place. As he falls towards the water, everything hits me. It's over…he's mine now. Blair and Benny should have Tadashi by now and be on their way to the safe house. I finally hear a splash, signifying that Hiro's no longer a threat to me…I've won. I glance over to the roof of the building to my left and see something shining in the moonlight. Must be what I sliced off of Hiro.

I land on the roof and walk over to the object to pick it up. _"Hey boss."_

I raise my fingers to my earpiece. "Yes?"

 _"_ _We got him."_

"Excellent." I pick up the object and see that it's a locket. I open it and see something I didn't know I needed. This will break him…which means rebuilding him will be that much easier. "I'm on my way. Make sure he doesn't go anywhere."


	4. Let It Die

Chapter Four: Let It Die

"He's in here."

"Thank you, Benny." I hear boots colliding against concrete…the footsteps are getting closer. They slow down until the person stops in front of me. I look up and see Mika, still wearing that stupid cloak. She takes off her hood and smirks at me.

She tosses something towards me and it lands directly in front of me…it's…Hiro's locket… "No…"

"I'm afraid so. Now there's nothing standing between us sweetie." She walked over and kneeled in front of me. She started touching my face…she kept talking but I didn't hear a word she said.

Hiro…he couldn't be. He can't be dead…She killed him. She…his locket…everything that we've done and been through flashed before my eyes. The moment I saw him in the hospital. Him taking his first steps…he…he walked over to me instead of mom or dad. His first day of pre-school. Him losing his first tooth. The baths we took together, him crawling into my bed when he had a nightmare, remaining strong when we moved in with Aunt Cass after our parents died. Him helping me with projects like the hover boots for Mochi. Seeing him graduate high school at 13, getting arrested that night he went out bot fighting, the dream he had, all the romantic things that happened after that, the small fights we had, the fun times with our friends…me proposing to him on graduation day. The last image I see is that gap-toothed smile I love more than anything…and I'll never see it again.

"-ashi? Tadashi, honey, what's the matter." She rubbed her thumb over my tear stained cheek. My eyes were wide…I could feel the tears dripping off or my chin, onto the floor. "Please don't cry. I know it hurts now, but this is the start of something new and wonderful. You'll forget all about him in no time."

"You…You honestly expect me to forget about someone I've spent my entire life with? I've known him since the second he was born…We've been through so much and you want me to just forget him?!" I looked her up and down, tugging at my restraints. "And for what?! Some delusional bitch who kidnapped two members of our family and…and KILLED the love of my life!" I lurch forward and look her in the eye. "I will never love you. I will never feel anything aside from searing, undying hatred for you. You've done nothing but make my hate for you stronger." I look down at the locket and feel my heart sink all over again. "You thought this would break me didn't you? In a sense…you're right. I am broken…but I can put myself back together…You may have taken him away physically but you can never…ever…erase eighteen years of memories. No matter what you do."

She looked stunned to say the least. She didn't say anything, tears started pouring down her cheeks, a few pained squeaks escaped from her before covering her mouth and backing away from me. She walked out of the room, leaving me alone with my thoughts. All I could think about was how I'd never get to see him again. I'd never get to hold him in my arms again…never get to feel the softness of his lips against mine again… I swear, the moment I see an opening, I'm going to get out of these restraints and kill her…she deserves nothing less…But is that what Hiro would want? Would he want me to live out my life knowing I killed someone just to avenge his death? Or would he want me to live out my life knowing I did the right thing?

Jonathan and I were sitting on my bed watching something on TV. I had zoned out ages ago. He was nestled into my side with his head and hand resting on my chest. Ever since our kiss at the police station we've been…I have no clue actually. He hasn't asked me out. I haven't asked him out, which I could do considering Stacy flipped her shit when I told her. We've just been sort of…here. I guess with the search for Mika still going on, Jon-Jon has more important things on his mind.

"How do you think the investigation is going?" He asked without looking up at me.

"Not sure. Last I heard, they had a few leads in the warehouse district, the docks, and the buildings in the run-down part of the city. Why? What are you thinking?"

"Hmm? Me? Nothing." I look down at him for a few seconds before he finally sits up. "What?"

"Don't lie. You're terrible at it."

He sighs as he takes off his glasses and wipes them on his shirt. "I'm just worried. I don't know what Mika will do if the cops find her."

"If?"

"When, when the cops find her. This is all so…so weird and stressful. I just want things to go back to the way they were. I'd much rather be fighting with her at home rather than worrying about if she'll die in a hail of gunfire because she's obsessed with Tadashi!" He had been getting louder as he spoke. I don't think he realized it. He was breathing pretty hard as well…I felt so bad for him and his family. They didn't deserve this, no one did.

I pull him into a hug trying to calm him down. We stayed like that for a few minutes and when I felt his breathing return to normal, I pulled away. "I know you're worried…but all we can do is wait. The cops don't want us going out and looking for her so we just have to wait until we hear or see something."

He looked at me, sadness and concern contorting his face into something that almost brought me to tears. I gave him my best smile, trying to convince him that things would get better. He smirked at me even though it was a sad one. He was trying, that's all I can ask of him in this situation. He leans forward and gently taps his forehead to mine before pulling away. I do the same but keep our foreheads pressed together.

"Your bangs are soft."

"New conditioner. You like?"

"I love. Smells like vanilla."

"I know how much you love vanilla scented things."

"I…"

He let his sentence trail off. I saw his eyes flick to my lips then back to my eyes. "I still can't believe it…"

"What?"

"How two brown-eyed Asians managed to give birth to a child with such stunning eyes." Jonathan's eyes really were a genetic wonder. Guess having eyes you'd only see in anime is a recessive trait.

"Yo-you really like my eyes?"

"Most stunning shade of gray I've ever seen. And no…that's not a set up for a Fifty Shades of Grey joke."

"But it is a setup for something else…"

"Yeah?"

He brought his lips closer to mine. "What are you waiting for?"

I ended the little game of cat and mouse we were playing and kissed him. That song was running through my head and I'm sure the same could be said for him. He slowly pulled me on top of him, leaning back just enough to let out another line of lyrics.

"I'll let you set the pace."

"Cuz you're not thinkin' straight."

"My head's spinning around, I can't see clear no more."

An anticipated silence hung in the air. I smiled at him and as I was about to recite the next line, my door flew open. "Hey we- WHOA!"

I slowly looked over my shoulder at our very unwelcomed intruder. "Ya know Gabe, there's this wonderful new invention called KNOCKING!"

"Heh…sorry to interrupt but it's important."

I kissed Jonathan once more before sitting next to him. He fixed his glasses before sitting up as well. "So, what's so important?"

Gabe ran a hand over his face before straightening his hat. "Well…Hiro and Tadashi, being the clever, millionaire, genius inventors that they are, narrowed down where Mika was hiding after she left a clue on the hood of the squad car two of my officers were in." He stopped to analyze our faces and before we could respond, or Gabe could lose his nerve, he continued. "Two teams went to the locations Hiro and Tadashi suggested and…during one of the raids, Mika had apparently set a trap. She blew the floor right out from under them. In the heat of the moment…Tadashi and Hiro both turned up missing. We…we have their two friends back but-"

"Chief!" One of his officers appeared behind him, clearly out of breath.

"What is it?"

"It's about Hiro Hamada."

"Spit it out!"  
"…a few of the officers near the warehouse district…they saw Hamada and Inoue racing towards the docks and followed them. By the time they arrived…" He paused for a second. "By the time they arrived…they saw Inoue…kill Hiro Hamada. His body fell into the water. Before our officers could go after Inoue, she vanished."

"Hiro's…dead?" Jonathan squeaked out.

"No…that can't be! That guy's a powerhouse. H-he's strong! He can't be…"

"Shit…This just got messier…Search the area for the body. We'll have divers look in the water. I'll…notify their Aunt and Uncle."

"Cass…you're going to wear a hole into the floor if you keep pacing."

"I can't help it. I'm worried about them."

I walk over to her and gently grab her wrist before pulling her into my arms. "I am too. Those two have always treated me like their uncle so the fact that they're in danger makes me want to help as well but…what can we do? Go out there and offer ourselves as bait or something? Don't poke the bear, it leads to mauling."

"I…I know…it's just that they're…they're the only family I have left. I've raised them since they were little and before that I was constantly in their life. I was there when Tadashi was born and I waited with him while Hiro was being born." She looked so downcast. I didn't know what to say...I was an only child so I had no siblings and therefore no nieces or nephews. Most of my cousins were older than me and I wasn't there for the births of the younger ones.

"Cass…I'm sorry. All we can do is let the police do their jobs." I let her rest her head against my chest, trying my best to comfort her. I rubbed circles in her back, trying to calm her down. It was beginning to work when I heard a knock on the door. I looked at my watch, it read 2:32 a.m.

"That has to be-"

"Cass, Naes, its Chief Montoya." Cass gently pulled away from me and opened the door. "Evening."

"Good evening Chief Montoya."

"This must be important." I said taking up the spot next to Cass.

"It is…" He removed his hat and placed it over his heart. I felt the atmosphere in the room shift, it became dense, the same way it did before bad news was uttered. "I'll cut to the chase, during a raid on abandoned buildings in the city, Tadashi Hamada was abducted and Hiro Hamada…Hiro Hamada is presumed dead. Officers are searching for him in the waters by the San Fransokyo Docks as we speak but…it is a recovery mission, not a rescue mission."

I was in utter shock. I looked over at Cass, knowing that she must be in a far worse state than I was. She looked so defeated. No, she looked far worse. Her face was a mix of shock and epitomized heart break. There was nothing I could say or do to take away the pain. One of her…one of _our_ boys was in the hands of some psychotic stalker turned murder and the other...had fallen at the hands of the same person.

Her legs must have given out because she collapsed onto the floor but maintained her upright position. I dropped to her side and tried to coax a response out of her, but she just sat there. Her eyes were wide, tears streamed freely down her cheeks and her mouth hung open slightly. I wanted to do something, anything besides just sitting there in silence. She covered her face with both hands and let out a heart breaking sob. That single sob opened the floodgates to hysterical crying. I quickly cradled her in my arms as she screamed and cried. I shed a few tears myself. Such precious boys…they'd lost so much already. They had so much going for them…

 _"_ _Chief?"_

"What is it?"

 _"_ _We…we found him."_

'Cold…so…so very cold. Why…where am I? I feel like I'm drifting…I can't see anything. It's so dark. Wait…there's a light. Am I supposed to go towards it or away from it?' The light consumes me before I can make up my mind. I'm standing now…not drifting anymore.

I look around and see a vast expanse of white. Nothing but white. Then I see a door frame…I go through it and suddenly I'm in a hall full of portraits. 'These are…my memories.' I look at the portraits on either sides of the seemingly endless hall. I see memories from when I was three…my birthday party…losing my first tooth…learning to tie my shoes…the memories go on and on. Countless memories…

I don't know how long I had been walking but I eventually see more recent memories. I stop at one that makes me smile. 'That's…the day Tadashi proposed to me…' The portrait begins to play like a video. It was from my perspective I could see the happiness etched into his face. Every curve, every line, every wrinkle…and the way his face lit up when I said yes.

'Tadashi…Tadashi. Wait…He was…in danger.' I'm flung forwards to what I assume are the most recent memories. The raid. Me chasing Mika and…and. 'Ah!' I fall to the ground clutching my chest. Pain rips through my body. My eyes clamp shut as the pain in my chest begins to throb. When I crack my eyes open, just a bit, the pristine, white and gold hall that I had been in begins to fade to black.

I look down at my vest. A long diagonal slash graces it, I slowly take it off and see a crimson stain on my shirt. The slash was deep enough to tear through my vest, shirt and almost down to the bone. Muscle tissue was more than likely torn but nothing vital was hit. A flood of emotions and memories washed over me so quickly that I thought I'd lose my mind. I came to realize where I was, a sort of purgatory. I was hurt…I was bleeding…in the conscious world, I was floating in the waters adjacent to the San Fransokyo Docks. 'Mika did this to me…she tried to kill me.' As more and more realizations washed over me, what I had to do became more and more clear.

'Fight.' Tadashi…

'Fight.' Aunt Cass…

'Fight.' Go Go…

'Fight.' Honey Lemon…

'Fight.' Fred…

'Fight.' Wasabi…

'FIGHT!' I will…I WILL!

My eyes fly open as I release the last bit of air in my lungs. Water starts to take its place so I clamp my mouth shut once more. I look around and see the wall that made up the edge of the docks. I grab my blades and hope my plan works. I fire my hooks towards the wall and when they make contact, I reel myself in using my gas as a propulsion system. As I near the wall I angle my hooks upwards and I rise towards the surface. Soon I'm taking in huge breaths of fresh air. The pain in my chest doesn't stop me, it just reminded me that I needed to get this wound patched up. I pulled myself out of the water onto the worn wood that comprised most of the docks. I take a couple of deep breaths, finally adjusting to the feeling of air filling my lungs.

"Stupid bitch…you'll have to try a hell of a lot harder than that to kill me." I look down at my wound and see that I'm still bleeding. I peel off my vest and harness then start to rip my shirt into long strips to cover it. "Doesn't feel any better. But it'll do until I get to a hospital." I look around, still clutching my chest, trying to figure out which way to go.

"You there! Hands up!"

I turn towards a man who was clad in body armor and aiming a G36 at me. "I would gladly do that." I grunted. "Save for the fact that there's currently a thirteen inch gash in my chest." I hold up my damaged vest, ensuring he sees the San Fransokyo Police Department crest on the back of it.

He lowered his gun and reached for the radio on his shoulder. "Chief. We…we found him." He came over to me and took out a medical kit. "Here, sit down, I need to do some field first aid."

I did as I was asked. "Hmph, just my luck. Getting found by the team medic." He started to examine me and clean me up and as he did I had a chance to think. Think about what our next move should be. Think about Tadashi and where he was. "Hey…what happened to the unit in the building? To the girls and…Tadashi?"

"That team was extracted and sent to San Fransokyo Medical as were the women they were tasked with rescuing."

I waited for him to say something about Tadashi but he kept bandaging my wound. I grab his hand to stop him, forcing him to look me in the eye. "Tadashi. Hamada. What happened to him?"

"He…he was taken."

I felt my grip on his hand loosen. My body suddenly felt heavy and I wasn't sure if it was from some of the medication he gave me, from blood loss, or from shock. I didn't have time to process the news I had just received before I was clutching the side of my head. "What…what did you give me?"

"Mild sedative. Just let the medication take over, you need rest anyway."

"Notify…my Aunt and Uncle…" I was fading out of consciousness relatively quickly. The last thing I could register was the officer nodding and other members of his unit arriving before I finally let unconsciousness swaddle me once again.

"He is okay. Aside from the gash in his chest, and a few cuts from the explosion, he will be alright."

"Is there any telling when he'll wake up?" That sounds like Aunt Cass.

"The sedative administered by the officer that found him should be wearing off soon. You can stay with him for as long as you need to."

"Thank you so much doctor."

I start to open my eyes and am almost blinded by the light of the hospital room. "Shit that's bright."

"He's awake!" Aunt Cass yells. I brace myself for a hug but I don't get one. I open my eyes again and see Uncle Naes gently gripping her upper arm.

"Easy there. He's still a bit groggy and has that wound in his chest."

"Thanks Naes…Uncle Naes. You can let her go now." I sit up and slowly raise my arms just as Aunt Cass wrapped her arms around me. I could feel her trembling before she started crying.

"I'm sorry Aunt Cass. I couldn't protect him. I promise you though…we'll get him back. I swear to you we will."

She nodded against my cheek before slowly pulling away. "Hiro…I thought-"

"We thought you were dead." We all turned to the door and saw Go Go, Honey Lemon, Fred, and Wasabi.

"Those hospital gowns really suit you two. Sorry for the scare. I let my guard down and…she got me."

Go Go sat on the opposite side of my bed then threw her arm around my shoulders. "Hey, you're alive. That's what's important. Thanks for coming to save our asses."

"Thank you so much…we-"

"Don't worry about it. What else is family for if not counting on them in a time of crisis? Speaking of which…our family is still one person short…We need to get my fiancé away from that psychopath."

"You got a plan?" Wasabi asked as he crossed his arms.

Go Go chuckled. "Do you even have to ask? He always has a plan."

"Not…not this time. I haven't had time to think of one." The room went quiet. I felt like I let everyone down…I didn't want them feeling sorry for me, or disappointed that I couldn't think of anything.

"Can't blame you for that. First you get attacked and…almost killed, then you have to drag yourself out of forty feet of water, and after that you were given sedatives while you were being patched up. It's okay Hiro…you don't have to do everything on your own."

"Yea, we're your family. After all this craziness, you kind of have to rely on us, dude."

"Hiro, honey, we'll think of something." Aunt Cass scooped my hand up, sandwiching it between hers. "However…for the time being…rest. You need it. Don't push yourself, you should be out of here in less than a week." I wanted to protest but I knew that I needed to do as Aunt Cass and the doctors instructed.

"…alright. How…how bad is it?" Everyone looked away from me, even Go Go did. "Was it…really that bad?"

"Doctor Patel said…he said that the wound was deep enough to leave a shallow gash on your breast bone. Had you not been falling away from her, or wearing the vest, the gash may have gone deeper and punctured your lungs." Aunt Cass explained. Her face was grim and full of sorrow.

I squeezed her hand and smiled. "Come on Aunt Cass, it's me. You don't think something like this is gonna do me in do you? Don't look so sad, I'm still here."

She nodded, not trying to fight back the tears in her eyes. "I love you so much."

I pulled her into a hug and rubbed her back. "I love you too." I sighed in content as the hug went on, I looked up and smirked at everyone looking at us. "Okay, everyone bring it in for a group hug."

"Can we…can we get in on this too?" Everyone turned to see Jonathan and Mateo standing awkwardly in the doorway.

"I swear if anyone else shows up, we'll all be pressed against the walls." Go Go groaned.

"Ummm hey guys. Oh, Aunt Cass, Uncle Naes you guys already met them at the station. Everyone else…Jonathan Inoue and Mateo Ramirez. They called the police the night you two were abducted."

"And now we're here to see if you're okay."

I sit up a bit more and beckon them over. "I'm fine. Just need some time to heal. And if I need anything, there's a Baymax in the corner." I notice that Jonathan hasn't looked at me since he came in and he's been squeezing Mateo's hand awfully tight. "Jonathan…what's the matter?"

He looks up at me with sorrow in his eyes. "I'm…I'm sorry sis did this to you." He started trembling and it looked like he was about to cry. "She wasn't like this growing up! I swear she wasn't! Now…look at what she's done. Kidnapping, attempted murder, holding people hostage, endangering the lives of officers…I'm sorry everyone. I really am…"

The room fell into an uncomfortable silence for a few seconds. Mateo looked down, remorse written all over his face. I looked around at everyone before pushing myself out of bed. Aunt Cass gaped at me but I just shook my head. I made sure the I.V. wouldn't get ripped from my arm as I made my way towards Jonathan and when I finally reached him, I threw my arms around him.

"It's not your fault. None of this is…You don't have to apologize for the actions of another person, family or not. No one had any control over them aside from her."

He hugged me back and I heard a low pitched sob escape from him. "I…"

"It's okay. I forgive her…"

"YOU WHAT?!" Go Go shouted.

I turned to look at her with a bit of annoyance in my eyes. "I forgive her. Only because I need to be able to move on in my life. I'm not saying I condone her actions whatsoever, I'm saying I want to be able to move on after this is over, and I can't do that if I'm still holding on to what she's done."

Go Go looked away before sighing. "Fine. You'll have to give me some time on that one though."

"Hmph, fair enough." I look back at Jonathan and smile. "You're a good person Jonathan. I won't hold your sister's actions against you or your family." I look at Mateo who was still close by Jonathan. "And you, you're being such a good friend. Sticking by him and making sure he's okay. You two risked your lives to help us. Thank you for that."

"You guys would have done the same in our position."

"Now…in response to your question from earlier." I pulled them both into a hug, which they happily reciprocated.

"No way am I missing out on this."

"Me neither."

"I'm in."

"Well if she's in, I'm in."

"Come on, Cass."

One by one, everyone encircled the three of us. I could feel the love radiating out of every pore of the people around us. I couldn't help but feel the absence of the one love we were all craving: Tadashi's.

"I've decided to overlook the harsh words you said earlier. You were just coming to terms with losing Hiro and that made you irritable."

"Yea…you're right…I'm…I'm sorry. It won't happen again."

"Oh sweetie, you mean that?"

"Yes. I do. Now…can you loosen my restraints? They're a bit uncomfortable."

She kneeled down in front of me and ran her fingers along my jaw line. "As much as I'd love to, I don't know if I can fully trust you yet. Don't be mad okay?"

"I'm not mad. I understand. Can I have something to eat though? I'm a little hungry."

"Oh of course!" She reached behind her and pulled out a couple of cheese burgers.

"Where did you get those?"

"Hmm? Oh Blair ran out and got them."

"Not what I meant. I didn't see you come in with them."

"Oh!" She stood up and showed me the pouch on her left hip. "I made this hip pouch. I was inspired by Naruto."

"That's…really cool. I see you made one modeled after the ones from the manga."

"Yea. More storage." She crouched back down and began to unwrap one of the burgers for me to eat.

"No pickles or onions, extra ketchup. Just like you like."

"Thanks."

"No problem." She smiled.

After we finished eating, she turned to leave but I called out to her. "Hey Mika."

"Yes?"

"I…I love you."

"I love you too Tadashi. But…what about Hiro?"

"He's gone. Best thing to do is try and move on to something better right?"

"Oh Tadashi! You make me so happy." She ran over and hugged me.

"Are you sure though?"

"Yea. I don't care about Hiro anymore."


	5. Drip

Chapter 5: Drip

"Hiro, I know it's been three weeks but shouldn't you take it easy?"

I stopped my assault on the heavy bag in Fred's gym for a second to address Wasabi's question. "Not as long as Tadashi is still out there with her."

Mateo peered around the side of the heavy bag, wiping sweat off his brow. "He has a point. You're still healing and the cops are combing the city. I get why you're like this, at least I try to, but you need to rest."

I look between both of them before sighing. "Okay…After another set of kicks I'll take it easy for a couple of days. I promise."

Wasabi sighed before walking towards the door. "Alright. Mateo, make sure he keeps his word."

Mateo puffed out his chest and saluted Wasabi before taking up his position behind the heavy bag again. "Alright. One more set then you hit the showers."

"Right. I'm not going to hold back."

"Yo-you've been holding back?"

"Tadashi, honey."

"Yes?"

"I have big news!"

"What is it?"

"We're leaving San Fransokyo!"

"Wow that's great news!" I moved as much as the chains would allow and hugged her.

"Still sorry about the chains."

"Well it's an upgrade from being bound to a chair a week ago. When do we leave?"

"We leave in a couple of days. I have to gather a few more supplies."

"Alright. Where we headed?"

She relaxed in my arms and looked up at me. "Wherever the wind takes us."

"Are we Jack Frost now?"

"Maybe you are. You're as hot as he is."

"Don't you mean as cool as he is?"

"Touché. I'll be back soon. Gonna grab dinner."

"Thai?"

"Of course."

"Appreciate it." I kissed her cheek before she left. As the metal door shut, I cringed.

I hated keeping up this act for a full three weeks. Pretending as if I actually cared about her, making her think I was hers and she was mine. It made me sick to the pit of my stomach. It was working though, she trusted me. Normally that would have taken longer but considering the fact that she's so blinded by her 'love' for me, gaining her trust wasn't an issue, waiting for the right moment to finally get out of here was. She was trusting me enough to tell me that in a couple of days, we'd be hitting the road. All I knew was that my chance was coming soon and I couldn't miss it.

I take out Hiro's locket and gently touch the photos inside. "I promise…I'll end this…just like you would have wanted."

"You two ready?"

"Yea…"

"Good to go."

I looked at Jonathan who still seemed like he wasn't okay with what we were doing. "Look…you don't have to come along Jonathan. I'm sorry for roping you two into this but…the others wouldn't understand."

"No. It is okay, I get it. I'm just nervous."

Mateo kissed him on the cheek and patted his back. "He's not exactly used to breaking the law or defying people so it's understandable."

"I need you to be committed on this one though. No hesitation. Precision. I need this to go off without a hitch."

"I can do it." There was a sudden look of determination in his eye.

"Yea, if there's one thing he can do, it's pull off things at the right moment. His timing is impeccable without him trying, and when he does try, he nails it."

I smirk. "Well alright. Is your gear ready?" They gave me a thumbs up. "Okay then. Let's go."

I looked down at the ground then straight ahead before taking a running start. As the roof ended, I let myself float in the air before firing my hooks and launching off with Mateo and Jonathan behind me.

"You okay back there Teo?"

"Just fine Johnny boy, just fine."

Ever since I was hospitalized, Mateo and Jonathan had been around a lot more. Over these last two weeks, they've been great. Jonathan helped me repair my gear and make a few adjustments to it as well as making gear for Mateo. He said something about Mateo always wanting his own since he saw Mika use hers.

Mateo had been helping me train in conjuncture with Go Go, taking on two skilled opponents at once really helped me identify what I needed to work on. Those sparring matches made me glad I never neglected maintaining my flexibility. It's just a shame I had to drag them into my plan to get Tadashi back. Admittedly, it may have been better to at least let Go Go in on the plan but I didn't want to put her in danger again. Considering Mika already tried to kill me, I had a feeling she wouldn't care about anyone else getting in the way and wouldn't hesitate if she had to kill anyone else in our family. Jonathan and Mateo on the other hand, I had a feeling she'd spare them.

I had been able to sneak out of Fred's mansion with great ease and scour the city for Mika and Tadashi. I found them near the dump, which was weird because the cops had already checked there. It was weird but smart, no one checks the same place twice. I saw Benny outside smoking a cigarette and when I got inside I saw Blair guarding a metal door. I went back outside to see if there was another way in and there was a boarded up window. I peered inside it and saw Tadashi. My heart started racing but I saw the door open and Mika enter the room. As much as I wanted to charge in, I had to plot this out. I reluctantly left that night, vowing to come back and get him.

As we neared our destination I looked over my shoulder and nodded at my partners who nodded back at me. "Hoods up." We tossed our black hoods over our heads and proceeded towards the building. When we landed on the roof, I passed out thermal imaging goggles that I had 'borrowed' from SFIT. "Put these on, they'll let you see through the smoke. The button on the right powers them on and off, the buttons on the left allow you to alternate between sonar vision and thermal vision as well as magnification."

"Got it."

"Test them out while I check our supplies." I unfurl a storage case that contains everything my plan called for.

"How'd you manage to snag all this stuff?" Mateo started fiddling with some of the supplies. "Flash-bangs, smoke pellets, tear gas, wire, and…are these shuriken?"

"I grabbed most of this stuff from our apartment."

"What are you two, Mr. and Mr. Smith?"

I smirked at the comment. "Might as well be. Anyway, you know your roles right?"

"Run through it one more time."

Jonathan sighed. "It's not because he's an idiot or anything…okay he is."

"Hey!"

"He's meticulous. He wants to make sure he has it down to a science."

"Fair enough." I proceeded to go over the plan again and emphasize their roles. "And then you get the hell out of there. I cannot stress that part enough. You guys go and get a hold of the cops."

"Copy that. We're ready."

"Alright. I'm gonna take out Benny first then on my mark, the plan starts."

"Are you going to…?"

"I'm not going to kill him, I'm going to knock him out then tie him up."

"Alright. We'll get into position. Earpieces on?"

We all switched on our earpieces. "Earpieces on. Wait for my signal." I fire one hook into the side of the building, taking one last look at Mateo and Jonathan before rappelling down to about the middle of the building.

Benny was still walking around smoking, periodically checking his phone. He settled into a spot about three or four feet away from the entrance. I take a breath before beginning my free fall towards the ground. I descend in silence and right before I hit the ground, I pull one of the triggers on my handles, causing the cable to tighten. At the same moment, I land on one foot and drive the other one into Benny's back, sending him flying away from the door.

He tumbled a few times but eventually came to a stop. I retracted my cable before charging at him. He looked up and went for what I assumed was a gun. My foot connected with his face and as I was about to do a follow up, he blocked. He made it to his feet with his gun in his free hand. I immediately disarmed him but failed to notice his other hand grab a knife. He managed to leave a cut on my cheek before I pulled away.

"I thought you were dead, brat."

"Yea, well, think again."

"My pay hinges on that crazy bitch getting what she wants. You're NOT screwing that up for me!" He charged at me, swinging the knife at me, trying desperately to make contact. I kept out of his reach until my back was pressed against the building and before I could move much, the blade was being plunged into my shoulder. He smirked, satisfaction evident on his face.

I managed to kick him away and clutched my injured shoulder. "You honestly think a small wound like this is enough to kill me?"

"Obviously not. You survived that cut she made. So I have to step my game up!" He came at me again and before I knew what was happening, I was on my back with his knife being pressed towards my throat. "I'll make sure you'll never make another smart comment again."

I desperately pushed back against his hands, trying to prevent the blade from piercing my throat. I couldn't lose here. Tadashi was in the building directly behind me and here I was, flat on my back staring death in the face, again. Something…something inside me snapped.

I jerked my head to the side at the same time I let his blade sink into the dirt below me. I used the small space created by him slipping forward to grab the blade I had fastened to my belt and stab Benny. I could have stabbed him anywhere…shoulder, leg, hand…but no. I stabbed him in the temple.

I rolled his body off of mine and sat there for a moment, processing the fact that I had just killed a man. Granted it was a man who was trying to kill me but still… "I can't get bogged down in this now."

 _"_ _Hiro. Is everything okay?"_ I looked over at Benny's lifeless corpse before shaking my head.

"Yea. Give me two minutes to get into position then on my signal, we begin."

 _"_ _Copy that."_

 _"_ _Right."_

I swing up to where Jonathan and Mateo are, taking up my spot to the right of the farthest window on the building. I peer inside and see Blair standing there, filing her nails. I don my own pair of thermal goggles to scope out the room behind Blair and notice that there are two heat signatures inside.

"Hiro? You okay? You're bleeding."

"I'm okay Jonathan. We have to-"

"It can wait a few minutes while I patch you up. Get up to the roof."

Reluctantly, I followed him to the roof. He pulled out a medical kit I didn't know he had and set it down next to me before rummaging around in it. He cleaned my wounds with a clean cloth before disinfecting them, stitching the wound in my shoulder closed, and wrapping it in gauze.

"Didn't know I had Sakura Haruno backing me up. Thanks."

"Oh he's just the brains and medical aspect of Sakura, I'm the brawn."

"And the whiner."

"She doesn't whine anymore."

"Fair point. Alright, back into position."

We got back into our spots on the side of the building and after a quick check inside, making sure things our targets were still in place, the operation began. Jonathan tossed a flash grenade into his window at the same time Mateo tossed in his smoke grenade. We slipped on our goggles so we could see through the smoke. I launched into the room and shoulder checked a very disoriented Blair into the wall. Jonathan and Mateo were right behind me, they opened the metal door enough for me to toss two flash and two smoke grenades into the room. Mateo took out his shuriken and tossed one into the wall to my right and the other into the wall on my left. Jonathan did the same with the throwing knives he had. They were connected by a trip wire so in case Mika managed to slip by us, she'd fall flat on her face or flat on her back.

"Get Blair out of here and tie her up on the roof."

"Got it." Mateo grabbed her then went out of the window he came in with Jonathan close behind him.

I turned towards the room Tadashi was in. I took a calming breath before readying myself for whoever came out of the room. As predicted, Mika came stumbling out of the room first. She got caught up on the trip wires we set just set up, tumbling onto the ground. I pointed my blade at her, feeling a bit of relief. She had no way out: Benny was dead, Blair was tied up, the cops were on their way, and I had a three foot long blade all but resting against her skin. She's done.

"You…you think you've won. I can practically smell the satisfaction, smugness, and relief radiating off of you." She suddenly reached up and tightly latched onto my blade. Blood starts to drip down my blade as well as her wrist. "I have come too far, planned too much, and put in too much effort TO LET SOME BRAT THAT SHOULD BE DEAD, COME BETWEEN ME AND MY DESTINY!" She pulled me closer to her and delivered a firm knee to my stomach before punching me with enough force to send me tumbling into the metal door beside me.

I scramble to my feet, readying myself for a fight. Mika unleashes a flurry of powerful kicks and jabs, all of which I either counter or block. She doesn't slow down at all, her blows are quick but heavy. She gets in a couple of good shots and it seems like all of my counters don't faze her.

She manages to trip me and before I can roll back to my feet, she has a gun aimed at my head. I feel panic spreading throughout my body. I have flash backs of the times we fought and how she managed to best me. I feel so helpless. I feel stupid because all of my training seems to have been for nothing. Rage and fear bubble up inside of me, tears threaten to spill from my eyes before the world slows down…I've felt this before. I don't want to die...

"HIRO!"

My eyes go wide and I wait for the unmistakable sound of a gunshot but no such sound rings out. The only sound I hear is the fading echo of Tadashi's voice. I feel a warm liquid dripping onto my cheeks. My gaze drifts from the gun, to Mika's face. It's full of shock, sheer unadulterated shock. Her eyes are wide and her mouth is slightly agape. Blood is slowly dribbling from her mouth down her chin. My gaze finally lands on the blade that is jutting out of her chest, coated in a thin layer of her blood.

"I'm sorry…"

"J-Jonathan?"

"I didn't…Sis…I'm so sorry but…you needed to be stopped."


	6. Break

Chapter 6: Break

"I've already run through the entire story with you guys ten times. I know what I did, I know what the consequences are. In my case it can be labeled self-defense because Benny was actually trying to kill me. I know I'm being charged with manslaughter and interfering with a police investigation but look at what was accomplished: Blair ratted out Yama's gang, a lot of dangerous people are off the streets, and Tadashi is back safe and sound. Do you know how long the cops have been trying to nail down Yama and his subordinates? And we snag the one woman to rat them all out and put them away. And…" I heave out a heavy sigh before looking down the long table at Jonathan. "As tragic as it was, we no longer have to worry about Mika."

"Hiro, as your and Jonathan's lawyer, I fully understand what you're saying. In fact, it's my main argument. But the prosecution is looking at the negative outcomes of what happened. You _killed_ someone." I winced as he enunciated the word 'killed'. "You and Jonathan both-"

"JONATHAN SAVED HIRO'S LIFE AT THE COST OF HIS SISTER!" Mateo shouted. "Yes he…he killed her…I can't imagine how much pain he's in." Mateo gently took Jonathan's hand before continuing. "If the prosecution would really throw him in jail for saving not one, but two lives, then there is no justice in this world."

Our lawyer sighed while running his hand over his face. "I understand that Mateo. I really do. As I was saying, the bottom line is that Hiro and Jonathan both killed people and interfered with a police investigation. To be blunt, Hiro's case looks better than Jonathan's."

I glanced over at Jonathan who still wore a sullen, downcast look on his face. "But…the jury will have to consider the fact that…Jonathan sacrificed a family member to save two people…and they'll have to look at the good that's come from this."

"They are obligated to. If a jury only looked at the negative aspects and held pessimistic views of everything, everyone whoever stood trial would be in jail." He shuffled some papers around on the table before glancing around. "They'll also look at your pasts. Jonathan, your record is spotless. Never skipped class, gotten detention, stolen anything, back talked your parents, nothing. Hiro…you had a bit of a rough patch as a teenager. Bot fights, and that rebellious phase."

"What do you expect a genius with limited mental stimulation to do?"

"I was getting to that. You've done a lot of good with your microbots. You also helped Tadashi perfect Baymax before they were distributed throughout the city. Baymax has saved a lot of lives and I'm willing to bet that some of those lives affect those of the jury members directly or indirectly. As for your microbots, they've been helping with feats of engineering so much over that last few years and the jury will have to consider that. You and Tadashi have been all over the news because of your inventions as well as all your donations to charities, homeless people, businesses, animal shelters, the list is almost endless."

"So…be straight with me here. What are our chances?"

"All things considered, good and bad, I'd say things are leaning towards us for both you and Jonathan."

"A-and Mateo?"

"Right. His cousin was able to talk to the station head and get the charges for him dropped. He tried doing the same for you two but the severity of your other offenses overshadowed that."

"Well…thank your cousin for trying."

"Will do…"

It had been a few weeks since Mika and Benny's deaths. I still remember it so vividly…Jonathan had come in through the window behind Mika and saw that she was about to…to kill Hiro so he reacted.

 _"_ _J-Jonathan?"_

 _"_ _I didn't…Sis…I'm so sorry but…you needed to be stopped."_

 _"_ _But…"_

 _"_ _DAMN IT SIS THIS ISN'T YOU! You…you were never like this…you used to be so loving and kind." Mika coughed up a bit of blood and I could see Jonathan's heart breaking. "Yea we fought…but I still loved you…the old you. I want…I want my sister back." Tears were streaming down his face and dripping onto his hand._

 _I just stood there in the doorway watching the scene unfold. I felt a mix of things: happiness that Hiro was alive…overwhelming happiness, horror at the fact that I was watching such a sweet and soft-spoken kid kill his sister to save Hiro, as well as a flurry of other emotions._

 _Mateo swooped in behind Jonathan and was visibly shaken by what he was seeing, but when Jonathan started to fold in on himself, Mateo grabbed him, falling backwards with Jonathan in his lap. Mika slid off of Jonathan's blade and fell onto her side._

 _"_ _Ta…Tadashi." She called out for me but I didn't move. "Please…my love…" I looked at Jonathan and he looked horrified. Mika had just called out for me. Not her mother, not her father, not Jonathan, me of all people. Her body went limp but she was still breathing…at least for the time being._

 _"_ _She'll…she'll bleed out before EMT's get here…" Mateo said barely above a whisper._

 _All I remember after that is the sound of sobbing and Hiro wrapping his arms around me._

"Tadashi? Tadashi are you okay?"

"Hmm?"

"You've been like this since we rescued you. Is it Mika? Are you having nightmares or something?"

"Not exactly."

He reaches out to touch my hand but I jump slightly. "Tadashi…I thought you'd be more…I don't know, clingy? You thought I was dead. You pretended to love Mika just to get her to trust you and you were planning your escape the night we showed up. I just…thought…"

"Hiro…" I kept my gaze fixed on my lap, not wanting to see the sorrow in his eyes. "I…I'm just having trouble living with what happened. You…you killed someone. I didn't think you could…"

"Tadashi, I had no choice. My life was in danger and I reacted, I have to live with the guilt of knowing I took someone's life…and now I have to live with…with my fiancé being scared of me." He sounded pained. I understand. After all of this insanity, I bet he wanted nothing more than to just stay in bed with me and enjoy the fact that he COULD actually stay in bed with me, and now there's a rift between us.

"Hiro…I'm sorry. I'm just…I know this is way beyond difficult to deal with: me, Honey Lemon, and Go Go getting kidnapped, Mika almost killing you, Mika and Benny getting killed…all of these are things we should have never had to deal with and now that we are…I don't know what to do. You know I'm glad to have everyone safe and sound…but how we got here is…"

"Tadashi. The past is just that, the past. If I could go back and change how things went down, you know I would." He reluctantly places a hand on my cheek, rubbing it with his thumb. "Unfortunately I can't. I can't go back and change anything." I lightly leaned into his touch and as I did, I felt the tears I was holding back for the duration of this conversation finally roll down my cheek. "Do you remember what you told me?"

"I've told you a lot of things."

"This one has stuck with me…especially during these trying times." I raise an eyebrow at him. " _'Life can be good and bad, either way we have to keep moving.'_ Remember? I know that this is, as you said, beyond difficult to deal with, but dwelling on it won't do us any good." He heaved out a heavy sigh before continuing. "I made it so you'll have to live with a killer…We'll both have to shoulder the burden of what I did. I know one thing though."

"What's that?"

He turned me so I was facing him and tilted my chin up so I was looking in his eyes. "Shouldering that burden will be a lot harder if I don't have you in my life." His voice broke as he spoke. "Please…stay here with me. I can't lose you again. After fighting so hard to keep you, after going through all of this, I finally have you back and…and it feels like you're pulling away from me. Please…" He pressed his forehead to mine, I felt the tears leaking from behind his thick lashes drip onto my hand. "Please don't leave me."

He started sobbing. It pained me so much to see him like this. It was bad enough that he had blood on his hands, that he had to endure not just Go Go and Honey Lemon getting kidnapped, but me as well, and that he almost got killed twice by the person that took me…he didn't deserve to lose me after finally having me back.

"I understand," I wrapped my arms around him, pulling him in close. "I understand why you did it…you had to…I'm not going anywhere. I promise. I just need time…" He sat up in my arms, pleading eyes searching my face for what I meant. "It's over though. I'm not going to leave you. I couldn't if I tried."

"Tadashi…I know this is hard, but-" I silenced him with a slow encroachment upon his tear stained face. He let me place my lips against his and slowly fell into the pattern of kissing we usually did. We went slower than we usually did though, this wasn't the time for a heated make-out session. The way I was holding him, the way I was moving my lips against his, and the tears running down both of our cheeks were indicative of a need for comfort and reassurance. Hiro needed to know that he still had me, he needed to know that I could still be here when he needed me to be. Even though I was starting to crumble myself, I would still be his rock.

In all honesty, I would probably always have the knowledge that Hiro took a man's life nagging at my thoughts. I couldn't just forget that so I'd have to live with it. Another thought occurred to me and it made me react by clenching my jaw a bit, Hiro noticed and pulled away.

"What is it?"

"Hiro…I know I'll have trouble dealing with what you've done but…how are you going to cope? Are you okay?"

He looked at me and I could see his answer in the fresh tears rolling down his cheeks. He wasn't okay. He vigorously shook his head with his eyes clamped shut. "No…I'm not okay. I'm not okay at all! I…I keep picturing what I did! I see the fight replaying whenever I think about it. I could have handled it differently, stabbed him somewhere else, kicked him into the building and knocked him out, but no! No! I wanted…I think I wanted him to suffer but God I didn't want to kill him! He was trying to kill me and…and I…" He started sobbing and began to cradle his head in his hands again.

"Hiro…I'm sorry. I…I know you well enough to know you'd never EVER just murder someone because of something they did. He helped abduct me and you…you still wanted to spare his life. You still wanted to spare Mika's life!" I gripped his shoulders, forcing him to look at me. "You. Are not. A monster. You acted out of self-preservation. Anyone else would have done the same. 'Neutralize the thing that is threatening my existence. Let me continue to exist.' That's what humans operate on, that's the way we're programmed. It's why we flinch when something comes too close to us."

"Tadashi…I…"

"You protected yourself. He had a knife ready to puncture your throat, you acted…you kept yourself, Mateo, Jonathan, Blair, and me alive. Hell, you made a plan that made it so no one else had to die…you know things don't go as planned so…we just have to live with what has been done. WE have to, not just you. Everyone has been affected and everyone will be here for you."

He didn't say anything after that. He just sat there in my lap with his head resting against my chest. He didn't have to say anything else, I knew he was at least partially convinced. I just wish I could make this better for him. He's only seventeen and he's had to go through so much. Hell I'm only 22 and I've been abducted, shot at, have almost had the people I love the most killed, and witnessed a kid only a few months younger than Hiro have to kill his older sister…No one should have to endure this, especially them.

I look down at Hiro who's still wearing a blank expression on his face. He's mature for his age but he's still so young…he's barely an adult. "Hiro."

"Yea?"

"Sleep?"

"Yes, please."

I kiss his forehead before letting him stand up so we can undress for bed. "It's um…nice to finally be back in our bed."

He nodded as he peeled out of his shirt. As it fell from his shoulders, I took the opportunity to take in all the dips and grooves of his back. As he turned to face me, I couldn't help the fact that my eyes fell on the scars he had, one from where Mika cut him, and one from where Benny stabbed him. He must have noticed because when I looked up at his face, he looked shy all of a sudden.

"I'm sorry." He just looked away from me, like he barely even heard me. "Hiro…those scars…to me…they mean that you fought and overcame what left them. To you…they might be ugly and a constant reminder of something…well, painful, but I don't see it that way." I run my fingers over the scar on his chest before placing a gentle kiss on it.

I let my fingers glide over his skin, down his side, until I gently grasp his hip. He places his hand on top of mine and smiles. "Thank you." He helped me out of my shirt before crawling into bed, still in his sweatpants. I get up and turn off the light before crawling under the covers next to him.

He had his back to me, I assumed it was because of his scars and I was about to call him on it when he reached behind him, pulled my hand over his side, and finally let it rest on his chest. His grip tightened a bit so I moved closer. He pressed his back against my chest and released a shaky breath. I pulled him closer to me, as close as I could without crushing him. I missed this, his warmth, the way his body fit into mine, his hair tickling my nose, and the way our legs intertwined. It still feels a bit different, but after everything that's happened it's understandable. However, in this moment, when we're curled up together like we used to be, it feels like we can get through anything.

"Harder."

"Jonathan…are you sure that-"

"I said harder." He fisted my shirt and pulled me closer to him before smashing our lips together in an awkward, aggressive kiss. I indulged him for a few more seconds before finally pulling away.

"Jonathan, this isn't like you. You're never this aggressive. As much as it turns me on, you're usually so passive and submissive." He propped himself up on his elbows and leered up at me. "Don't look at me like that. You've been like this ever since…" I let my sentence trail off. I wasn't sure I could actually finish it because it might set Jonathan off.

"I didn't invite you over to lecture me, I invited you over to keep me company and as of right now, you're doing a piss poor job at it." He sits up and scoots to the edge of his bed then hooks his fingers in one of my belt loops. "Come on, I know you're having fun. The bulge in your pants says so."

I scoffed and looked away from him. "This isn't you." I mutter.

"Sorry, what was that?"

I looked him right in the eye before borderline screaming "This. Isn't. YOU!" He looked unfazed by my tone so I gripped his shoulders tight, forcing him to look at me. "Jonathan, this isn't you. You're never been like this. As long as I've known you, you've never been so…angry, so aggressive. God knows I love it when you take charge, it turns me on, but Jonathan…this isn't who you are. I've indulged you for the last week for the sake of helping you deal with what happened but you pulling a complete 180 on me isn't what I expected. And you know what I think is causing it?"

"Oh, I'm sure you're gonna tell me." The way he talked sounded so…sarcastic and nonchalant. Sure we talked like this with each other but there was more…venom in his voice. It made me angrier than I already was.

"It's because you killed your sister. This is the way you're dealing with it, you're trying to use me to escape your problems. You of all people should know I hate being used, but I put up with it because I give a damn about you, because I just want to see you smile again!" I pinned him to the bed and glared at him. "You. Killed. Your sister. You did it to defend our friends. But…you can't keep doing this…you're not okay." He looked angry that I called him on his bullshit. I wanted to continue but I saw a tear come out from under his glasses and down his cheek.

"Good job, you found me out. Are you happy now?"

"NO! And I won't be until you try and work through this with me!"

"…I...I'm using my best friend to help me forget..." He turned and faced me again then kissed me.

My eyes widened in shock before I pulled away. He dropped his head back down onto the bed and smirked at me. It was… a sad smirk, highlighted by the tears rolling down his cheeks. "Jonathan…"

"Heh, yea, I'm a twisted little shit aren't I?"

"No…you're coping. You're coping in a weird way…" I let go of him before sitting at the foot of his bed. I raked my hand through my hair and sighed. "Jonathan…I'm not EXTREMELY angry with you, just disappointed." He crawled down to the foot of his bed and leaned against me. I put my arm around him and rubbed his shoulder, trying my best to comfort him.

"I'm sorry. I really am…"

"It's okay…you're sad…you've known her all your life and then…she turned into someone you didn't know she could be. She lost herself and you…you had to do what was right at the time. Hiro would be dead and Tadashi would be God knows where if you didn't intervene." I pulled him into my lap, cradling him and resting my chin on top of his head. "I can't imagine how you're feeling." I gently kiss his temple and try to soothe him as his trembling got worse. I knew there were very few things I could say to him…how does someone make murdering your own flesh and blood seem less severe than it is?

"You can't."

"Hmm?"

"You can't make it okay…"

"Hmph, you knew what I was thinking."

"You're easy to read."

"Shut up." I sighed and rubbed his back before speaking up again. "I'm sorry I can't help anymore…I really am. All I can really do is be here. I'll offer you physical as well as emotional support, but not the way I have been. I won't let you use me like you have been."

"I understand…I'm sorry I just…Mika, even though she lost who she was, she was still my sister and I…I..."

"Say it. You need to be able to say it, accept that it happened, accept that she's gone, and move on."

He took a deep, shaky breath, and exhaled before opening his mouth to speak again. "I…killed my sister…to protect the lives of others." He started sobbing immediately after the words left his mouth. I was right there for him, letting him drench my shirt in the emotions he had been trying to avoid for so long.

"Shhh…it's okay. I'm here. Let it out." I couldn't help but be reminded of a song I had caught him singing more than a few times over the years, so after a few taps on my phone it started playing. He looked up at me when he heard the melodic notes waft over his eardrums, I smiled softly at him and nodded.

"Let it all out, Let it all out  
Tsuyogaranakute iindane  
Dareka ga kaitetta kabe no rakugaki no hana ga yureru"

The song played on for another four minutes, about two and a half of which were spent trying to comfort a sobbing seventeen year old. When the song ended, he looked up at me, eyes red and puffy, cheeks stained with tear marks. "Mateo…thank you."

"It's why I'm here. Want me to stay the night?"

"Please."

"Already taken care of." I kissed him softly before gently nudging him so I could get up. "Get ready for bed." I stood up and took off my shirt. As soon as I let my arms rest at my side, I heard a squeak, I turned to Jonathan who was looking away from me and messing with his glasses. I rolled my eyes and smirked at him. "God, you're worse than Hinata…or maybe Karin since you have glasses. Either way you should be used to seeing me shirtless by now."

He still didn't look at me so I crawled over to him and gently pressed him flat against the bed. "Wh-what are you doing? I thought-"

"That was a different situation. This…is all me. I'm a willing participant this time." I nuzzled my nose against his neck and let my breath waft over his skin. I could feel him shiver beneath me. I trail up towards his mouth, close enough to kiss him, but I opt for teasing him instead.

"Teo…"

"Hehe, you're cute when you're almost begging for it. Tell you what, I'll indulge you IF you get ready for bed."

"Can't…do that…"

"Oh? And why not?"

"You have me pinned…"

I examined the position we were in and concluded that he couldn't get dressed with me straddling his hips. "Look at that, you're right." I got off of him and waited for him to move but he laid still. "Umm, hello? Earth to Jonathan." No response. "Ugh, going all catatonic on me. Fine." I undid his pants and slipped them off before unbuttoning his plaid shirt and slipping that off as well. "There, your usual boxer-briefs and t-shirt bedtime attire." I slipped off my pants before climbing under the covers. "Hey, you, with the glasses. Get under the covers."

"R-right. Sorry."

I stared at him for a few seconds after he joined me. "Alrighty then, space cadet. You okay?"

"No…I just wanna sleep…in your arms if that's alright."

"Of course." He got under the covers and curled into my side. I placed a few kisses on his forehead before shutting my eyes. "Glasses."

"Right." I felt him shift around before relaxing against me again. "Mateo?"

"Hmm?"

"Can I…have a…"

"Shh. Go ahead." I didn't even open my eyes when I felt his lips press against mine, I just let him take over. This wasn't the same kind of kissing that we were doing earlier, this kind of kissing was more…comforting and controlled. I snaked an arm around his waist and turned towards him when I felt a tear drip onto my cheek yet refrained from deepening the kiss.

He pulled away just enough to press his forehead to mine, letting out a laugh that could best be described as a choked sob. "Give me your hand…"

"Doing the thing?"

"Mmhmm." I curled my pinkie and ring fingers into my hand, leaving my index and middle fingers extended, before placing them against Jonathan's, who had done the same with his opposite hand.

"You're such a nerd." He got the idea from watching Naruto. It's the sign that appeared at the end of Naruto and Sasuke's fight at the Final Valley. He started doing it when all this insanity started and now it seems to calm him down a lot.

"Shut up."

"Who knew locking fingers like this could do so much? Get some rest okay?"

He squeezed my fingers a bit before replying. "Okay…thank you." He kissed me again before settling against my side.

"You're welcome. I'll play 'Long Kiss Goodbye' for you if you want."

"I'd like that." I grabbed his phone off of the nightstand, went to the playlist we set up together and found the song he requested. I pressed play before setting the playlist to go off after an hour. The music began and I could feel him relax instantly. Something about J-Pop just resonated with him in a way that I had just barely come to understand. Oh well, it makes him feel better so it makes me feel better.

"Well that went well."

"There you go again with that lethal sarcasm."

"I actually thought it went well, no sarcasm intended." Mateo ushered Jonathan into our living room before shutting the door.

"Mateo's right, the jury seemed to be leaning in our favor. They definitely took it easy on Jonathan." I was about to mention why they probably did but didn't want to upset him.

"We were also great character witnesses so you should be fine too, Hiro."

"I would feel better about that if I hadn't painted myself into a corner when the prosecutor started grilling me."

The prosecutor for the city questioned me for what seemed like an eternity and I ended up essentially incriminating myself. Yea, we did interfere with a police investigation but we also got the most dangerous crime syndicate in the city shut down, and rescued my fiancé. He kept droning on and on about how the Inoue's lost a child and how Benny's family had lost a father.

They were there in court today and when his wife took the stand, she actually confessed that he was abusive and a cheater. She was going to leave him and take their children with her. That helped a lot, admittedly I was nervous when she addressed me directly but what shocked the entire courtroom was the fact that she apologized for her late husband's actions and thanked me for freeing her and her children. In hindsight, that was actually a major setback for the prosecution. It also didn't help them that the Inoue's weren't all that mad at us for Mika's death.

They knew their daughter was too far gone from the young woman they raised. Of course they mourned her death but had to focus on healing their family. Jonathan was depressed and the only things tethering him to this world were Mateo and his parents, Mateo more than anything.

I'm amazed at how well our family is handling things too. Aunt Cass and Uncle Naes are still standing by me even though they know I have blood on my hands. We all sat down at the Café one evening and talked everything out. They both said that they understood why I had to kill Benny and would try not to look at me any differently. Aunt Cass said she still saw me as her sweet, loving, generous nephew. Uncle Naes told me he still saw me as the young man he met two years ago. However, they were both forthcoming about the fact that there would always be the lingering knowledge that I had taken a life. Essentially the same reaction Tadashi had, and just like Tadashi, they still loved me.

Honey Lemon, Fred, and Wasabi were all about the same, shocked but understanding. Go Go seemed to be the only one who didn't view me any differently.

 _"_ _So wait, you…you're not…shocked?"_

 _"_ _Nope."_

 _"_ _Mad?"_

 _"_ _Nope."_

 _"_ _Weirded out?"_

 _"_ _Nope."_

 _"_ _Disgusted?"_

 _"_ _Nope."_

 _"_ _You still love me?"_

 _"_ _Yup."_

 _"_ _H-how?"_

 _She got off of the couch and walked over to me before poking me in the forehead. "Because I get it."_

 _I touched the spot on my forehead. "So does everyone else-"_

 _"_ _No. They don't. I think me, you, and Jonathan are the only ones that really understand how it feels."_

 _"_ _Are you…are you telling me you've killed someone before?"_

 _She went silent. She looked away before looking back up at me. "I did…but he's still alive."_

 _"_ _Wait, what?"_

 _"_ _When I was little, well fifteen, I was almost raped. I was on my way home after a music lesson and some pervert pulled me into an alley. He stuck his hand down my skirt and before he could get any further, I took the knife I always carried out of the sheath on my belt and slashed his wrist. After that I knocked him to the ground and stabbed him a few times, primarily in the torso. He managed to get out from under me and run out of the alley, clutching his wrist. He was smart enough to know that if he let go, he'd bleed out. He got all of ten steps down the street before my knife was lodged in his calf, it's kind of hard to run when you have something inhibiting one of the major muscles needed to move your leg."_

 _"_ _Go Go…"_

 _"_ _Anyway, to cut this tale short, he died twice on the way to the hospital. Blood loss, trauma, shock, blah, blah, blah, the point is I killed one person twice. Me. A fifteen year old girl." She walked into the kitchen and grabbed a can of soda before flopping back down on the couch. "Point is, I know how it feels…except the person I did in is still kicking. That's the only aspect I don't fully comprehend. Mika and Benny are six feet under, my attempted rapist on the other hand…well let's just say he probably wishes he was right there with him. People in prison don't take to well to rapists…especially those who target underage 'children'."_

 _I stood there with a sullen look on my face as Go Go calmly sipped the soda she grabbed. "Go Go…I…I uh…"_

 _"_ _Oh shut up, I've come to terms with it. Hell I didn't even breakdown over it until about a week later. After that I underwent therapy and the usual post traumatic event counseling. I'm fine enough to talk about it freely now, I just choose not to. The reason I brought it up isn't for sympathy or pity, it's to let you know that I'm the only one that can almost fully understand how you and Jonathan feel." She took a huge gulp from the can before looking at me for the first time since she sat back down. "I'm here for ya kid. And before you protest, you'll always be a kid to me…my kid brother anyway."_

 _"_ _You're kid brother that's taller than you."_

 _"_ _Height means nothing."_

 _"_ _Your kid brother that could actually take you in a fight."_

 _"…_ _that's-"_

 _"_ _Checkmate."_

 _"_ _Shut it." She glared at me._

 _"_ _Love you too."_

 _"_ _Hmph, yea, yea. Now be a good little brother and go make your big sister something to eat."_

"You did fine." Tadashi kissed my temple to try and reassure me. "I think we should all relax for a bit. You guys want to order some pizza or cook something?"

"Pizza." Everyone in the room harmonized.

"I'm siding with them. I don't feel much like cooking."

"Fine, but you're eating something. You don't sound like you want to eat anything either."

"With you and the rest of our family here, I doubt I'd be able to skirt around eating."

"Cute and smart. Alright, who wants what?" a cacophony of answers filled the room. "HEY!" Tadashi quieted the room with his sudden outburst. "Alright, we'll go in order around the room. Babe?"

"Sausage and cheese is fine with me."

"Mateo?"

"Tater tots and bacon."

"Jonathan?"

"Same as Mateo."

"That makes this easier, Go Go, Honey Lemon?"

"Well, I know my pink loving princess wants veggies."

"And my violet dragon wants steak."

"Wasabi and Fred?"

"Go Go and Honey Lemon already covered us."

"Yup we're good dude."

"Cass and I will stick to pepperoni and Canadian bacon."

"Alright, and I'll get a few tins of chicken Alfredo and wings."

"Is this starting to turn into a party?"

"Seems like it, but it's not a party unless someone breaks out the karaoke machine."

"I-"

"Don't even think about it Aunt Cass." Tadashi and I said in unison. She pouted a bit at our reaction. "Next time, Aunt Cass. This feels more like one of those times where we all eat and then pass out."

"Okay, fair enough."

"They sure look cute together."

"Which pair?"

"Yes." After the pizza arrived, it was almost inhaled by everyone there. And, as Hiro predicted, everyone except for Mateo and I passed out. Cass and Naes were curled up on the couch next to Hiro and Tadashi. Go Go and Honey Lemon occupied the arm chair adjacent the couch, and Wasabi was resting against the wall with Fred in his lap.

"Unfortunately, there's no room for us." He surveyed the room before looking at the hallway, then back at me. "Umm, what's with that look?"

"If my memory serves me correctly-"

"Which it rarely does."

"AS I WAS SAYING, there should be a balcony in their room." He tugged me in the direction of their room. When we got to the balcony, I couldn't help but take in the city lights. I leaned forward over the balcony, letting the wind caress my face and ruffle my suit jacket. "Beautiful, isn't it?"

"Yea. It really is." Mateo leaned back against the railing and I couldn't help but admire the stance he found comfort in. "How are you feeling?"

"Full." He slapped my shoulder and glared at me. "Okay, okay…I'm…I don't know actually. I suppose I'm neutral. I don't really feel much of anything, honestly I've been trying to keep my mind as far away from the courtroom as possible." I looked down at the street below us, trying my hardest to stay grounded in the present but it isn't easy. I take deep, steady breaths to try and stave off what I knew was coming but it all seemed futile.

"Jonathan?"

"Y-yea?"

"Stay. Here."

My breathing started to become more labored. "I-I'm trying." I loosened my tie and gripped the railing tighter.

I felt Mateo put a hand on my back and on my chest, trying to get me to sit up. "Look at me. Jonathan, please." I looked up at him trying to concentrate on him but all I could see were scenes from that night. "Stay with me. We have to get your breathing under control." He started breathing and trying to get me to mimic him. I tried my best but it wasn't working.

"Teo…I'm…" I started crying as I sunk deeper into my memories.

He kept me upright, locking his eyes onto mine. The pleading look on his face made me want to fight through this episode. "It's okay. I know you're trying, let me make it a bit easier okay?" I nodded before taking another shallow breath. "You trust me?"

"Of course."

"Kiss me."

"W-what? I-Is this the t-ime for that?"

"Just trust me!" He pressed his lips to mine in a rushed manner but then he quickly turned his motions into intentional, meticulous movements. The familiar crease of his lips paired with the familiar movements they were making took me back to the first time we kissed. He placed a hand on my cheek and I instinctively began moving my arms to his shoulders.

After a few minutes, he pulled away. "Mateo..."

"Feel better?"

"Yea…thank you…How did-"

"How'd I know that the kissing would work? I didn't. It was a gamble in all honesty." He sat down with his back to the wall. He patted the spot next to him, beckoning me to sit beside him. I did as I was silently commanded and sat beside him. "I know one of two things could possibly happen: either you'd calm down or I'd freak you out more. And seeing as how you were only breathing through your mouth, the latter could have been…"

"A bit risky."

"Hmph, risky is an understatement."

He put his arm around me, pulling me closer to him. "But, I gambled and won."

"The one time you needed to."

"Excuse you, luck has smiled upon me a lot."

"Sure it has…Thank you Mateo."

He turned to look at me, flashing his best reassuring, mildly cocky, smile at me. "My pleasure." He sighed, relaxing against the wall. "This has been one crazy summer, hasn't it?"

"Indeed it has. I think this has to be the best part of it though." I placed my hand atop his, giving it a gentle squeeze.

"What? Me and you?"

"Not just that, we've gained new friends. It wasn't under the most ideal circumstances, but here we are."

"You're right. I'm not happy about how we got here but I'm happy we're still here." He gave my hand a light squeeze. "Here especially."

I couldn't help but smile at him but a thought ripped through my mind and out of my mouth before I could stop it. "What about school?"

"Fuck."

"Understatement of the year."

"Well…umm…Brightside, no one will mess with us? Some people might even respect us more."

"Maybe…"

"I just realized something." I looked at him quizzically, waiting for him to continue. "Who cares? Why would we even care about some assholes who won't matter in a few months? If someone shoots their mouth off, I'll put them in check." He let out a breath that dripped with exhaustion. "We have the others too…and we know that Hiro is going to have a rough time getting through it too…Tadashi and the others should be fine at work…well Tadashi might have some issues but he should be fine for the most part. Cass and Naes might have a bit of backlash, especially after the trial is over. And-"

"Mateo. You're rambling. You're over thinking again. I know there's a lot of things that can go wrong, but as long as everyone involved in this sticks together, we'll get through it. For now, let's just get through this trial and go from there, deal?"

"On one condition."

"What is it?" He gave me a sly look, I just rolled my eyes and straddled his lap. "Deal?"

He leaned in closer, smiling wide, eyes glistening in the partial moonlight. "Deal." We stopped smiling long enough to press our lips together. From there, our slightly giggle filled kissing evolved into a passionate make out session on the balcony. We stripped off our jackets and started to take off our shirts when I pushed him onto his back. "You taking charge again?"

"I thought you liked the aggressive side of me."

"Oh trust me, I do. I just wanted to know." He reached up and cupped my cheek, smiling softly at me. I gently took his hand then slammed it above his head. I put his other hand beside it and looked at him with an admittedly smug look of satisfaction. "Meow, tiger."

I drove my knee upwards a bit, making his growing erection press against his pants. "Meow yourself."

"You really love drawing things out, don't you?" He moaned.

"A little bit."

"I have a serious question though. How far are we taking this?"

I stopped my musings to think about his question. The farthest we've ever gone is groping and dry humping. He never pressured me to go any farther than this and I was thankful for that. He did let me watch him masturbate though, and it made me…want to join in, however my natural shyness stopped me. I had been thinking about losing my virginity and for a long time, I knew I wanted Mateo to take it…but not now. Not like this.

"Space cadet, helloooo. Earth to Jonathan."

"Huh? Oh, sorry. I umm…"

"What's wrong?"

"It's…complicated."

"Okay Avril Lavigne, let me up." I did as he asked and when he sat up, he sat across from me with his back to the railing, waiting for me to speak.

"Well…I do want to have sex with you."

"Going straight for the jugular hmm?"

"I've learned to be a straight shooter around you, anyway…I want to go all the way with you but not like this."

"Not…like this as in not on the balcony? Because this would be a cool place to-"

"No, that's not what I meant. I…I want to…"

"You want to be more than friends before we do anything…" I nodded. "Jonathan…I-"

"I like you. A lot. I have for a very long time. I think it started the day you saved me from those bullies or somewhere along the way, all I know is that it happened. And now, after all of this insanity, my feelings have only intensified. I love you Mateo, I really do. You've been there for me for years and now, after all of this, you've proven to me that you're here for the long haul…and honestly I'm tired of not being more to you…"

"It's about time you opened your mouth and said what you really wanted to say. You want a title. Personally, I don't think we need one but if you want one, then so be it." He chuckled. "Look, Jonathan, of course I'll be here for the long haul. I watched you kill your sister and two seconds later, you were sitting in my lap while I tried to keep you from losing your shit, I sat next to you at the police station after we followed her and tried to figure out what she was doing, I sat next to you in the courtroom today and during our consultation with our attorney, at the lunch table at school, in class, on your bed, if you haven't noticed the reoccurring theme here, I've always been by your side. And in all honesty, I was a bit scared of dating you…not because of any baggage you think you have, but because of my own selfish reasons, mostly because I was scared you didn't feel that way about me." He let out a bitter laugh. "Stupid, right? But now…I think I'm ready. However…I don't want the reason we start dating to be so we can have sex. I've waited this long, I can wait longer. So if you want to be 'official', I welcome it. But more importantly…" Ugh, that smolder, Jesus fuck Mateo. "I love you too."

I sat there in awe at the admission that just spilled from his lips. He just bedded all my fears. All the fears of rejection, all the fears of being pushed away, all the fears of him just using me or 'just being a good friend', they all just melted away. "You…you mean every word, don't you?"

He simply sighed before leaning forward. "Does this answer your question?" He gently pressed his lips to mine, taking the lead in a new and unexpected way. He usually guided me and let me take the lead but this time the movements of his lips were similar to waves ghosting up a sandy shoreline: gentle, smooth, knowing. His experience in this endeavor was clear, he wasn't forceful and he wasn't timid. The best way I could describe the feeling is…loving.

He broke away after what seemed like an eternity, leaving me a bit dazed but the happiest I had been in a long while. "Wow."

"That's all I get?"

"That's about all I can say."

"Can you say something else?"

"Depends…do I have to use big words?"

He chuckled. "No…just one. Will you go out with me?"

"You sound like you're proposing, ya know that?" I adjusted my glasses a bit as I looked at this…amazing guy I was so fortunate to have in my life.

"Answer the damn question."

"Yes."

"Good. I officially have the best boyfriend in existence."

"Pretty sure about 3 people in the next room would disagree with that."

Mateo and I jumped nearly a mile in the air. "Jesus Christ, Hiro, don't do that!"

"You nearly gave us a heart attack!"

"'Bout time you to got together. I'm up about $300 now."

"You guys bet on us?"

"Yea, I bet between the first and the twenty-fifth. Don't get us wrong, we KNEW it'd happen, we were just betting on when."

"I hate you guys." Mateo and I harmonized.

"Awwww, that's cute. You guys are even talking at the same time." We both scoffed and looked away from Hiro, who just kept giggling at how 'cute' we were being. "Come on, let's go finish off that pizza and get you two home."


	7. Like You Do

Chapter Seven: Like you do

The rest of the trial ran smoothly. It actually shocked us, we expected more harsh questioning and more intense examination by the prosecution but it didn't really happen. Well, not in the ways it had happened before. Yes, we still got put under a magnifying glass, but considering all the good Tadashi and I had done as well as the fact that my criminal record was…relatively spotless, the jury had no reason to believe I'd just go around killing people or that Benny's death was a homicide. In Jonathan's case, he was viewed as an innocent high school student dragged into a dangerous situation that ultimately required him ending up either a witness to a homicide, or the cause of one.

The jury decided that Jonathan and I should have the charges against us dropped on the grounds that we were protecting ourselves and others as well as the fact that dangerous people were taken off of the streets. The judge, who had family members in Baymax's care, wholeheartedly agreed before dismissing our case.

Saying that we were relieved was by far the biggest understatement that could be made. The sense of freedom that came with the sound of the judge's gavel being brought down was indescribable. All I can recall is a weightlessness engulfing me…as well as Tadashi picking me up and nearly snapping me in half with the tightest hug he's ever given me. I assume everyone started cheering and shouting, soaking up the fact that two members of their family wouldn't be carted off to some detestable jail cell.

"I'm so happy you're home."

"You're not the only one. I feel lighter than air right now. I don't have to worry about going to jail anymore, I don't have to sit in a court room anymore, worrying if I'll get shipped off to jail alongside Jonathan, I don't have to have to see the stress and worry on everyone's faces while I get grilled up on the stand." I clasped Tadashi's hands tightly in mine. "It's over."

The smile that graced his features made me feel warm. It made me feel like none of the last few months had even happened. Even though I had a couple permanent reminders that the events did indeed happen, the smile in front of me was a glowing reminder of the good times that had passed. Memories of Tadashi showing me his inventions when we were children, of the two of us scarfing down Aunt Cass's food, of us passing out together on the couch after a long night of homework, and countless other good times flashed to the forefront of my mind.

"Hiro, are you okay?"

"Hmm? Yea." I chuckle a bit as I'm pulled from my thoughts. "I'm fine, I'm better than I have been in a very long time."

"I'm glad to hear that." He said as he ran his thumb over my cheek. "You look better now than you did a couple months ago."

"And your smile is back. I missed it."

"Is that why you spaced out?"

"Partially, yes. I was going down memory lane."

"Did you have a nice trip?"

"I did." My eyes darted down to his lips before meeting his gaze again.

"Well, these lips do more than just smile, ya know."

"Actually, I don't. I could use a little refresher." He smirked at my not so clever way of telling him to kiss me before indulging me.

He gently laid me onto the bed before pressing our lips together. I instinctively parted my legs, allowing him to take up his usual position between them. I place my hands on his cheeks, taking in the familiar feeling of stubble prodding my skin. Tadashi tended to keep his beard in check because he hated how much older it made him look, also because I nagged him to shave it. I actually missed it. I missed the scent of his aftershave. I missed the passion that radiated from him in moments like these. I missed…this. This moment felt like it always had. From the first time he kissed me until this moment, its felt magical, genuine, and sincere.

"I missed this." We said at the same time. I couldn't help but laugh. We were back where we were before any of this began. And it felt good.

"Hiro…do you…want to…"

"Only if you're okay with it. Personally, I've been wanting to ravage you since we got you back but the timing would have been atrocious."

"All I could think about was your face. Every day I had to lie to Mika, pretending to be in love with her, pretending to be over your death…all the while my heart was in shambles." He was starting to tear up as he caressed my cheek with his thumb. "I missed everything about you. I couldn't stop thinking about all the small things about you: the way your hair smells, the little dips and grooves of your anatomy, how sensitive your inner thighs are, the way your eyes light up when you hear or smell approaching rain. All these things and more…they made it feel like you were there with me…"

"Tadashi…"

"Now you're here. And I plan on never letting you go." He guided his hands along my inner thigh, over my underwear. "And I plan on giving in, and letting my primal instincts take over." He gripped my thighs tighter, causing a moan to bubble up from inside me. I clenched my jaw shut, trying my best to stifle it. "Don't hold back. Let me hear it." He raked his nails over my thighs, trying his best to get a reaction out of me. It worked. Before I could stop myself, I was gasping and moaning like I hadn't been touch in years.

"P-Please…"

"No, I need to make up for lost time. I'm going to do this correctly." With a lustful, yet overjoyed, look in his eyes, Tadashi got to work.

It had been a while since we had done something this passionate. During the time that Go Go and Honey Lemon were missing, the most we did was kiss and cuddle. Hell, the kisses barely exceeded a peck. Then Tadashi went missing and I was hospitalized. Then we hit a snag between us when we rescued him and the trial started up, so up until now, we haven't been able to fool around or do anything resembling our former sexual escapades.

Now… we finally had time. And, like he said, he was going to do this correctly. He started by rutting against me while simultaneously leaving a trail of love bites from my jaw line, down to my collar bone. I could tell he just wanted to dive in but he was restraining himself. He sunk his teeth into me a few times before bringing my arms above my head. He used his free had to ghost his fingers over my chest, down my stomach, and back up my chest once more.

"What's the matter? I thought you'd be happy to feel my fingers glide over your skin again. You seem…distressed." He was really letting his twisted, sadistic side come out. I can't complain though, I love hearing the change in his voice, the slow, almost torturous movements he makes, and the way he effortlessly takes control gets me so worked up.

"Right there! Again, that spot…so good." I forgot how sensitive my throat was. The way he roughly dragged his tongue across my skin, paying special attention to my Adam's apple, was forcing me over the edge.

He must have sensed how close I was getting to losing it, because he stopped assaulting my throat to give me a smug look. "Someone's rather impatient." I tried to free myself from his grasp but he kept a firm grip on my wrists. "Bear with me here. I want to tear you to pieces just as much as you want me to, but I'm going to make sure I light up every sensitive spot on your body before finishing you. Next up, those ever sensitive nipples of yours."

Before I could utter a phrase the bared any resemblance of objection, Tadashi had his mouth working on one nipple and his free hand working on the other. I had long abandoned trying to contain myself, 'self-control' was no longer a part of my vocabulary. I just wanted this agonizing foreplay to come to a conclusion or else I'd have to take what I wanted from Tadashi.

"P-please…I need it. Now."

"I suppose I should…indulge you." He trailed a finger down my body, stopping at my crotch just to fondle me for a few seconds.

"Tadashi, please. I feel like I'm going to explode."

"I'm assuming you don't want me to prep yo-"

"Just put it in me." I panted. "Please!"

"Hmph, as you wish."

He flipped me onto my stomach, causing me to yelp in surprise. We hardly ever did it this way, we always liked looking at each other. He lightly traced the center of my back at an agonizingly slow pace before taking a firm grasp of my ass.

"You ready?" I nodded quickly, my impatience getting the better of me. I didn't stop to think that Tadashi going in dry might have painful consequences.

I heard the familiar sound of a cap being flicked open and silently thanked Tadashi for having enough foresight to at least lube up if he wasn't going to prep me. He pressed himself against my entrance and leaned down so that his mouth rested on my shoulder. With a single movement, he bit down on my shoulder and started pressing inside of me. I couldn't tell if it felt good or was too painful to feel good.

After what seemed like an eternity, I felt a familiar fullness. I felt the same warmth radiating from the body pressed against me. Then I suddenly felt a wave of pleasure as Tadashi's cock brushed against my favorite bundle of nerves. I heard that smug laugh of his echo through the air, he knew what he did and was hell-bent on doing it again.

He kept his pace slow at first, paying special attention to my sides and my back. He knew lightly brushing his fingers over my skin and slowly grinding himself against my prostate would get me worked up.

"I'm going to pick up the pace okay?"

I responded by pushing back against him and tightening myself around him. He let out a deep breath before chuckling. He started moving faster and gently pushed my upper body into the bed, making me raise my ass even higher. It took all the control I had to try and muffle the moans leaving my body, but I suppose Tadashi had other plans. He grabbed a handful of my hair, pulling my head back enough so that he could hear my pleasure filled moans escape into the air.

"Don't pretend…you don't…like this." He slammed his hips forward, eliciting a higher pitched moan from deep inside me. "Ride me."

"Okay…give me a second." I desperately tried to catch my breath before fulfilling his command.

We carefully switched positions, trying to remain connected the entire time. When I was finally on top of him, he gently massaged my hips, encouraging me to start rolling them. I slowly rolled my hips forward before deciding to raise and lower myself. Tadashi began meeting me halfway with precise thrusts.

I started to get tired but all my fatigue faded away when Tadashi grabbed my hips and slammed me down as he thrusted upwards. A wave of pleasure shot through me, it radiated from inside me, mostly because Tadashi was still jammed into my prostate. I tried to stay upright but double over and began clinging to his shoulders.

"You okay? You're gripping me pretty tight."

"You're…jammed right into…my prostate."

"Oh so that's what this is." He pushed a little harder and almost made me cum.

"Jerk, you know where it is."

"I also know you're at your limit. One more precise thrust and you're done."

"You…have to be at your limit too." I breathed out.

"Yea…wanna finish this?" I nodded slowly, still trying to catch my breath.

He slowly pushed me backwards so that he was hovering over me, then it began. Slow, rhythmic thrusting, consistent strikes against my favorite bundle of nerves, and a slow going make out session.

His pace began to increase, at that point we broke apart and various sounds began filling the air. I felt like all my senses were in overdrive: the heat being passed between us felt like it was enough to melt down diamond, the feel of his nails digging into my shoulders as he pulled me closer with each thrust was the proper mix of pleasure and pain, and the friction of him thrusting in and out of me was just like I remembered. It took me back to the first time we had sex.

"Hiro…"

"Me too."

"How do you feel?"

"Better than I have in a very long time."

"Really?" I nodded before turning to look at him.

"I missed this. I missed being this close to you. Not just in a physical sense, I know we're not where we were but-"

"That's to be expected after all we've gone through?"

"Asshole, I wanted to say it."

"Take it as a sign that we're back where we need to be."

"Fine, consider that your saving grace." I lean over and give him a peck on the lips but grimace at the stubble that's started to appear. "You need a shave."

"I thought you liked my stubble." He pouted.

"I'm picky like that."

"You're lucky I love you."

"SHIT!" I sat up abruptly, almost head-butting Tadashi in the process."

"What's the matter!?"

"The wedding!"

"Oh, that. We had a plan for that remember?"

"No! We made a plan for it?"

"Yea, after you graduate. We're get married then high tail it to Japan for a romantic getaway."

"Oh…" I flop back down onto the pillow beside him, still mildly in shock that we DID make plans for our wedding. "It's just that everything has been so insane lately that the only things I can recall focusing on are you, Go Go, and Honey Lemon."

He pulled me closer to him and kissed me on the cheek. "It's okay, after you graduate, we'll finally have our dream wedding."

"Ours, or yours?"

"OURS of course."

"I doubt that, you got way into planning it after you proposed."

"I did not!"

I sat up on my elbows. "You had magazines spread out all over the place, endless tabs open on your computer, and you had clippings up in every room."

"…Not EVERY room…"

"They were in the bathroom."

"Okay, okay. I did get a little crazy."

"A-"

"YES! Only a little. Besides…I was just laying out ideas that would best combine both of our interests and tastes. What you failed to notice where how most of the tabs, clippings, and magazines, were things you'd like."

"Now I just feel like an ass."

"Don't sweat it. You might be an ass, and you are."

"Watch it."

"But you belong to me. Get some sleep okay? It's been a long day."

He turned off our bedside lamp before turning to face me. I laid down facing away from him, and when his arms furled around me, pulling me into the familiar curve of his body, I felt whole again.

"Where is he? We've been waiting for an eternity."

"Go Go, it's literally been less than 10 minutes, you know it takes a while to go through names, even when you're number one in your class."

"Wasabi's right, now shush."

It wasn't long after that comment from Fred that Hiro's name was called. He looked so handsome in his special valedictorian robe. It was hard to believe that less than four years ago he was some brat bot fighting in San Fransokyo's underbelly. Look at him now, surrounded by loved ones, graduating at age 19 with a degree in Advanced Robotic Design and Engineering, with a fiancé, who just so happens to be his 24 year old brother. No one could have guessed it.

As soon as the ceremony was over, Hiro rushed over to me. I didn't hesitate when he leapt at me; I caught him and swung him around a few times before placing a passionate kiss on his lips. I couldn't stop smiling and I couldn't help crying a bit.

"I'm so proud of you."

He wiped away my tears before chuckling. "Don't start crying you big softie, you're going to get me started."

He leaned in to kiss me but was promptly stopped by Aunt Cass scooping him up in her arms, bawling and moaning. "I'M SO PROUD OF MY LITTLE HIRO!"

"Aunt…Cass…Can't…Breathe…Oxygen…Levels…Depleting…Ow…"

The portable Baymax Hiro carried activated, tumbling to the ground before inflating. "Hello, Hiro. I heard a cry of pain, is there something you require assistance with?"

"Look what you did Aunt Cass, you activated Baymax."

She dropped Hiro and scratched at the back of her head shyly. "Oops, sorry sweetie." She moved some stay locks of hair on Hiro's head, trying to put them in something that resembled less of a crow's nest.

He breathed in a few times before directing a playful smirk Aunt Cass's way. "Everything is fine Baymax. I am satisfied with my care."

Baymax scanned Hiro before returning to his housing, a feature that was built in to ensure that the user was really okay before Baymax deactivated.

I picked up the small red cube and before I could hand it back to Hiro, he was being swarmed by our friends, who could now be considered family in every sense except genetic relation. I was a bit miffed but remembered what I had waiting for Hiro back at the apartment, deciding that I'd let everyone get all their excitement and pride out of the way before showing Hiro his surprise.

"Make sure you keep his eyes covered."

"I got it."

"Are you sure Mateo?"

"Jonathan." Mateo deadpanned.

"Can you two continue this when there's no risk of running me into a wall?" I was being led into our apartment with Mateo's hands over my eyes. I knew what room I was being led into just by the turns he made me take.

"Ready, Tadashi?"

"Ready. Go to daddy, go on, go to daddy." Wait…did he just say 'daddy'?

Mateo uncovers my eyes in time for me to see a small flash of brown and white clumsily stumble over to me. "Tadashi…you…you got me a puppy?"

"Yup, not just any puppy, a brown Huskie with blue eyes, just like you used to talk about as a kid."

I scooped up the tiny bundle of fur and subsequently burst into tears. "Damn it, why'd he have to cry. I'm out ten bucks."

"Never underestimate the power of puppies, sweetie." Honey Lemon stanched Go Go's money from her hand. I didn't really care that they bet on my reaction, all I cared about was the five pound fur ball licking my tears away.

"I figured you'd like him." Tadashi got up and walked over to me. He scratched the puppy's head before kissing me on the forehead.

"You're the best. I mean that. What's his name?"

"Up to you. I snagged him from the shelter we donated to a few months back."

"The one we helped expand?"

"That's the one, I grabbed him up before they even named him. So the naming process is all up to you."

"Well…I won't name him after food."

"Excuse me?"

"Nothing Aunt Cass."

"So what are you going to name him?"

"Hmm, I could be a total nerd and name him after an anime character…or give him the name Tadashi helped me pick when we were little."

"Duke?"

"Duke."

"Such a big name for such a little puppy."

"He'll grow into it." Tadashi and I harmonize. I can't take my eyes off of our newest addition, he looks so content in my arms, like this is where he's been meant to be his entire life.

"Welcome to the family, Duke." Duke yawned and let out a little yelp and it was the cutest thing I've ever heard.

"Alright, enough with all this sentimentality, let's get this graduation party started. I brought the best booze I could afford."

"As always, Go Go's got the goods."

"Does this mean I'm on bartender duty?"

"Nah, I'll get it. I had to find something to do while Wasabi was at work."

"Are we going to wait for anyone else to get here first?"

"Nah, but Fred will be sure to have cold drinks made for them when they get here, isn't that right my dear."

"Wasabi, the poor boy is turning red." Wasabi kissed Fred on the temple before letting him get to work making drinks for us…well, not so much me, but everyone who was of drinking age.

The evening progressed relatively smoothly. Mateo and Jonathan's parents showed up with home cooked meals and graduation cards for me, Professor Callaghan and his daughter, Abigail showed up. She brought her boyfriend, who she met on a research trip, with her. The only hitch in the party was when Duke saw some food that was too good to resist sitting on top of the counter. He tugged at the cloth under it until it fell on top of him, needless to say, he was happy to be covered in the food he was seeking. However, it meant Tadashi and I had to stop talking to a few guests and clean up the mess as well as our furry child.

After our guests had gone, I was curled up with a book on the couch. Hiro came in and sat down next to me, clad in his favorite pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt with Duke in his arms. Little pup looked tuckered out from his first day here with us.

"How is he?"

"He's almost asleep. There was so much excitement going on today, he must have been a bit overwhelmed." He was gently stroking Duke's head while leaning against me.

"That's an understatement. Look at him, he was a hyperactive ball of fur when we first got here."

"And during the bath."

"Now look at him, he looks like he's made of Jell-O, he's molding perfectly to your body."

"Best gift ever. Don't get me wrong, the gifts I got today were amazing but Duke…he's perfect. I can't believe you remembered us talking about a dog just like him."

"I had to dig through some old drawings you did when we were kids, I saw a lot of a dog like Duke so…yea. Here he is."

"You're the best."

"I know."

"Ass."

"Love you too." I kissed the side of his head before going back to my book.

"So…about the wedding." And there goes the mood to read.

I closed my book before looking at him. "What about it?"

"Can we start getting more into planning it?"

"Of course. Now that you've graduated, we can start getting more serious about it."

"AWESOME! We need to set a date, and pick a venue, and get food, and-"

"Babe…tomorrow. You've already had a big day today, we can talk about this tomorrow."

He started pouting but Duke, as if on cue, licked his chin a few times before yawning. "Okay, okay, okay. Duke has convinced me, we'll start tomorrow."

"This puppy is proving he belongs here already, he's helping me win arguments."

"Speaking of puppies, is he sleeping in our bed?"

"Hmm…I don't know. He might develop a bad habit of doing so when he's older."

Hiro pouted at the exact moment Duke began whining. "Pleeeeaaase?" Duke rested his head on my forearm and looked up at me with his beautiful cerulean blue eyes.

"Well…I suppose one night can't hurt."

"YES! Love you."

"Mmhmm, love you too."

I woke up the next morning with Duke nestled between my and Tadashi's head. I love seeing Tadashi's face first thing in the morning, however, seeing an adorable little Huskie pup curled up on your pillow is the next best thing. I decided to slide out of bed and go start breakfast. I grabbed one of Tadashi's oversized shirts, pulled it on, then quietly slipped out of our bedroom.

I was midway through making breakfast when I felt a nudging against my leg. "Mochi this isn't for you." I looked down, seeing a pair of blue eyes looking at me in a rather confused way. "Oh, sorry Duke. I have to remember that we have an adorable puppy now, not a cat." He sat down on his hind legs and tilted his head, eyes never leaving mine. "Ah the famous puppy head tilt. If you're wondering what I'm doing, I'm cooking breakfast for us. I suppose you're hungry too. I'll make you something."

I grabbed my tablet from the counter and began looking up puppy friendly breakfast food. I settled on a boiled egg with some fresh berries and veggies from our fridge. I had just finished making Duke's breakfast when Tadashi finally strolled into the kitchen. He wrapped his arms around my waist and rubbed his cheek against mine.

"Good morning to you too."

"How'd you sleep?"

"I slept wonderfully, and not once did I get a paw or a tail in my face."

"Point taken." He kissed my temple. "Maybe he can sleep in our bed more often."

Duke barked enthusiastically. "I think he likes the idea."

"What's on the menu today Chef Hiro?"

"Well, I made you a veggie omelet, crepes, and bacon. I made myself pancakes and sausage."

"I thought you only ate sausage in the bedroom." I elbowed him as soon as he started chuckling.

"Anyway, I made Duke a boiled egg and some fresh berries and vegetables from our fridge."

"Why not give him some dog food?"

"A. I want to spoil this adorable little fur ball rotten, and B. I didn't know where you put it."

"In the pantry on the top shelf way in the back. Didn't want you finding it before you knew about Duke." He placed Duke's dog bowl in front of him, but before he set it down completely, I stopped him.

"Wait a sec!"

"What is it?"

"We can start his obedience training now." I grabbed the bowl from him then looked at Duke. "Duke. Sit." I said in a commanding voice. He sat down without any fuss, looking directly at me. I placed the bowl in front of him. "Wait. Wait. Wait." He stared at me, awaiting my command that would allow him to eat. "Eat." He rose from his haunches and began eating.

"He picked that up quickly."

"You picked a smart one." I patted Duke's head before sitting down at the center island and beginning to eat. Tadashi sat next to me and began eating too.

Breakfast was relatively quiet…until I remembered that Tadashi and I were supposed to be doing some wedding planning. After that, the day was a whirlwind of magazine clippings, clicking on our laptops, and the pitter-patter of puppy paws on hardwood floors.

By the time the day drew to a close, the apartment was littered in paper scraps, binders, and printouts of various things. Duke was asleep on our bed, Tadashi was on his stomach on the couch, looking at more cakes on his tablet, and I was on his back, looking at suits and dresses on Milanoo.

"This dress looks really nice. Go Go might even like it."

I rolled over and put my tablet in front of his. "It's…perfect!"

"Really? You think so?"

"The floral accents, the sweetheart neckline, the high split, and the red sash around the waist, this dress is beautiful."

I kissed the top of his head. "Well now that we've settled on dresses, let's take a look at the cake you were designing online."

I moved my tablet, revealing the utterly elegant cake Tadashi was designing. "Well?"

I placed my hand on his. "It's perfect. I love it." The cake he had been designing was a three tier, vanilla cake, matte black frosting, with white, blue, and red swirls along the edges. The top tier was illuminated by the glow of a full moon cake topper. There were ravens along the sides of the bottom tier, a couple of wolves along the middle tier, and top tier had a date written on it.

"Do you recognize it?"

"I do. July 16, 2014. When we finally became a couple."

He kissed my hand a few times before smiling at me. "So, what do we have left to do?"

"Book the venue, order catering, send out invitations, order the clothes, book our honeymoon trip, ACTUALLY order the cake, decorations, hire a D.J., and do fittings."

"That's a lot to do."

"Which is why in the midst of all this planning, I sent out texts to everyone and they're working on things right now…well, Go Go and Honey Lemon are. Wasabi, Fred, Jonathan, Mateo, Uncle Naes, and Aunt Cass are all probably asleep." My pocket started to buzz, alerting me that I had a text. I took my phone out and read over the message aloud. "Wrong, we're all up at the Lucky Cat getting shit done."

"Go Go?"

"Yup." I fired off a text thanking them for their hard work and telling them that we were retiring for the night but would be at the Lucky Cat in the morning.

"Who's working on what?"

"Go Go is on music duty, Honey Lemon and Mateo are working on decorations, Aunt Cass and Uncle Naes are working on food, no not by themselves, Uncle Naes is getting a catering company to help Aunt Cass out, Fred is in charge of the AV stuff, Jonathan is a form of facilitator and supervisor, and Wasabi is looking for good hotels in Japan for us to stay at, I said a three star would be nice but then he made a Kill La Kill reference and muttered something about 'only the best for his brothers'."

"So you were busy today."

"We only get one shot at this, I want to do it right."

"Point taken, bed?"

"Bed."

The next few weeks we were a haze of hectic errand running, screaming matches…and almost an all-out free for all. Wedding planning is quite the stressful endeavor. Thankfully, no one was injured, no one had a mental breakdown, and everything was ironed out. We booked a nice venue overlooking the Bridge at dusk. The theme of the wedding was 'Forest at Midnight'.

The ceremony was to take place on a cliff overlooking the bay. The arch where we were supposed to stand was black, of course, with red and blue ribbons spiraling around it. There was nothing too fancy about the set up. The real sight to behold was inside the room where the reception was to be held.

The room we booked for the reception was decorated to resemble a forest at midnight, while a full moon hung low in the sky. Fred wired it so that the glow coming off of the moon could change colors. He could make it shimmer rainbows if he wanted to. There were fake blackened trees lining the room, professional cutouts of ravens in the sky and cutouts of wolves along the walls, the moon was in the center of the far wall. What made this room even more special was the fact that it had a waterfall that flowed down towards the moon. The glow coming off of the water was indescribable. There were bridges over it so no one had to leap from one side of the room to the other. There were also all black Koi in the water. Hanging from the ceiling were red, blue, and black veils, just for a bit of atmosphere. The room was lit primarily by candles and the light coming from the moon decoration.

"I can't believe it."

"What?"

"Tomorrow…everything will be official. We've been engaged for years and now…with one exchange of words, it'll all be official." I looked at the ring on my finger, immediately being taken back to the day Hiro slipped it on. "Who would have guessed that I'd be marrying my little brother of all people?"

"Certainly not me."

"I know Aunt Cass." I chuckled.

"Nervous?"

"No." She gripped my ear between her index finger and thumb. "Ow, ow, owww, okay. A little!" She tugged harder. "Okay! I'm very nervous." She released her grip before sitting down next to me.

"Tadashi, honey, it's perfectly natural to be nervous. This is your big day! You get to finally tie the knot with the love of your life. At first I wouldn't have had any of this. Not at all. But seeing you two together and how much you make the other strive for the better made me think otherwise."

"Were…were you nervous?"

"Yes, yes I was. It was a life changing day, but now I couldn't be happier that it happened."

"So…I shouldn't be nervous."

"Honey, you've known him since he was born. You know him better than anyone else. Do you think you should be nervous?"

"No…I shouldn't be. I know him well enough to know that after tomorrow, things will only get better."

She kissed my forehead and ruffled my hair. "That's my nephew. Anything else bothering you?"

"Not really, I was just…reflecting."

"We seem to be doing that a lot."

"I remember mom and dad teaching me that as a kid. Reflect on the past to avoid repeating it in the future. Dad always used to say that a lot more than mom did though."

"That he did. He used to scold me and use that line all the time as if HE was my biological sibling instead of your mother."

"He had a point though. But that's not why I'm reflecting. I'm looking back at all the good that's happened to us."

"I have something that'll make it easier. Naes, can you bring me the photo album please?"

"Sure thing."

Uncle Naes brought in a photo album that Aunt Cass had put together, it started out with pictures of our family at gatherings and celebrations, then skipped to the day I was born, then to when I started walking and speaking. There it was, was a timeline of events that happened in our lives, summarized in a single photo.

We eventually came to the picture Hiro insisted on letting Aunt Cass take when he had that nightmare when he was 15. I could almost feel the happiness radiating off of him in the picture…that's when an idea struck me like a bolt of lightning.

"Excuse me." I got off of the couch and went up to our old room, dialing Fred's number as I did.

 _"_ _DUDE!"_

"Hey Fred, glad to hear you're still awake. I need a favor."

 _"_ _Anything for my brother."_

The title brought a smile to my face, I had to realize that I didn't have just one sibling anymore. "I need a favor. How fast can you get over here?"

 _"_ _Like, 5 minutes using my gear. Fewer if I gun it."_

"Get over here, bring your laptop."

 _"_ _On my way."_

"You think he's nervous too?"

"Of course he is, you two share the same thought process most of the time."

"And you know each other well enough to how the other is feeling."

"So I'm betting he's nervous too."

"You guys are probably right…I should call him." I took out my phone and was about to call Tadashi when Jonathan knocked my phone into the air. "Hey!" Mateo caught it and shoved it down his pants. "Guys, what the hell?!"

"You're not supposed to be in contact with him for 24 hours."

"So as your assigned 'guardians', we're keeping our promise to Tadashi and Go Go."

"One more than the other because she scares us more."

I slumped further into the couch. "Fine. So what do you plan on doing to keep me entertained tonight?"

"Let's see we can play video games, do karaoke, spar, order some food or cook, dress Duke up in some of the outfits the girls got him, we have a lot of things we can do." Duke climbed onto the couch and sat in Jonathan's lap at the mention of being dressed up…or it could have been the mention of food.

"None of them include drinking."

"Mateo." Jonathan scolded.

"Is it wrong to want to have a drink on Hiro's last night as a free man?"

"It is when everyone here is underage. Besides, we're going to do what Hiro wants to do." Jonathan leaned over and whispered "Personally, I'd vote for dressing Duke up."

I chuckled a bit. "Well, Mateo, I say you be a good boyfriend and go get the costumes on my bed for Duke." He sighed before rising from his spot on the couch.

"Wait! Babe, come here." Mateo stood in front of Jonathan for a second, I assumed a bit of mental communication was going on, couples can do that if the bond is strong enough I guess. Mateo let out another sigh before leaning down kissing Jonathan for a minute or two, then going to get the costumes.

"What was that all about?"

"Hmm?" Jonathan had started playing with Duke the second Mateo walked away. "That was just me keeping my little dope in check."

"I heard that!"

"You know I say that with love! Anyway, it was just a moment of me correcting him. Nothing to worry about."

"…okay then. How have you two been?" Jonathan's face nearly split in half. "With that smile, I take it things have been good?"

"Better than good. I always imagined what it would be like dating your best friend, to be dating Mateo. I never knew it would be this great. Yes we disagree, yes we get mad at each other, but-"

"Even though you get mad at each other, sometimes you can't help but look at them and remember how lucky you are to have gotten to be with someone who understands you as well as they do…"

"Exactly."

"I'm glad I'm not alone in my feelings." We turned and saw Mateo leaning against the wall with a huge grin on his face.

Jonathan was blushing so furiously that he resembled a ripe cherry tomato. "Ho-how much did you hear?"

"Every word." He strolled over, dropping Duke's costumes onto my lap before stopping in front of Jonathan. He squatted down in front of him, then smiled even harder. "You're amazing, you know that?"

"So are you."

They started kissing and it went from an innocent 'you mean the world to me' kissing to 'hey, let's have sex on the couch' kissing. Poor Duke was almost caught in the crossfire. He retreated to my lap and began nuzzling the costumes he had been given.

"This is making me miss Tadashi…wait…HEY MY PHONE IS STILL IN YOUR PANTS!"

They stopped making out long enough for Mateo to tell me that he put my phone in my room but then proceeded to climb on top of Jonathan. While they were being all lovey-dovey, I decided to start playing some video games. I got through half of Claire's story in Resident Evil: Revelations 2 and beat the Ninja World Tournament on S rank before they finally realized they were supposed to be keeping me company.

For the next few hours I proceeded to demolish both of them in all the Naruto games we owned without breaking a sweat. We took turns playing Mortal Kombat X, by taking turns I mean that they traded back and forth every time I kicked their asses as Cassie Cage, Sonya Blade, or Lui Kang. I let them practice for a bit while Duke curled up in my lap, dressed in his cute little sweater.

"You guys finally think you're ready to face me?" They looked at each other then looked back at me. I raised my eyebrows at them, awaiting their responses.

"Not a chance." They harmonized.

"If you could both play me at once you MIGHT have a shot."

"We tried that in Naruto."

"You beat us both at the same time."

"Actually, I dodged out of the way when you attacked me from both sides."

"Still can't believe we fell for that."

"We couldn't have predicted it, we're not Shikamaru."

"You're close enough, Jonathan."

"You two chained your attacks well, Jonathan picking Asuma to cover up your use of Kiba's Fang over Fang with his Burning Ash was brilliant. It would have worked, had I not worked people over with that strategy before."

"Fuck."

"Shoulda known he'd have thought of it ages ago."

"Don't get me wrong, you guys backed me into a corner a few times, but that's where the use of Susano'o comes in."

"Or Amateratsu."

"Or Roatation."

"Or Tailed Beast Mode."

"Or Sage Mode."

"Hehe…yeaaaa, what can I say? I have to be creative."

They both scowled at me before returning to their game. I had to admit that I was looking forward to tomorrow. I was a bit nervous, however, as I began reflecting on the past, I realized I had no reason to be. I knew everything was going to feel like a fairy tale tomorrow. I can't wait.

"Hiro, dude, don't look so pale, you should be happy. In just a few minutes you'll be saying 'I do' and legally bound to the love of your life."

"Mateo's right. This is a happy day. This place looks great." Jonathan reached out and straightened my tie. "You look great."

"Thanks guys, I really appreciate it."

"After all we've been through and all you've done for us, it's the least we can do. Bring it in." Mateo roped me and Jonathan into a hug. "I love you guys."

"We love you too."

"Hate to break up the love fest but we're kidnapping him for a second, you can come if you want." Go Go grabbed me by my collar and began to drag me down the hall.

"Watch the suit, woman!"

"Shut it, you'll thank me when you see what I'm doing."

"I'll thank you now if you let me go!"

"As you wish." She tossed me into a chair that was against the wall beside a doorway, causing me to smack my head on the wall.

"Ow!"

"Go Go, I told you to be gentle."

"Tadashi?"

"No peaking." Tadashi was apparently on the other side of the wall, right next to the doorway.

"Fine. You…excited?"

He stuck his hand around the corner, silently beckoning me to take it. I did. "More nervous than anything else."

"Me too…"

"Aunt Cass said it's normal."

"That's actually a bit of a relief." I squeezed his hand a bit, trying to steady my heartbeat.

"Hiro…"

"Are you…crying?"

"I'm just so happy." I heard him sniff a bit before continuing. "I really do love you."

I started crying as well. "I love you too."

"This is what true love is."

"Even I'm getting emotional watching these two."

I looked over and saw Honey Lemon holding Go Go's hand, I looked to where Mateo and Jonathan were; they were staring into each other's eyes, leaning against one another. I looked back at our hands and felt my heart swell.

"Hiro?"

"Yes?"

"Are you ready?"

"I am." I squeezed his hand a bit tighter and he squeezed mine back. "I'm ready to have the world know us as more than just business moguls, inventors, and two of the most generous people in the world. I want them to see us as two parts of the same person."

"Couldn't have said it better myself. I'll see you at the altar." With a final squeeze, he released my hand and left.

"You okay?"

I wiped away my tears before smiling wide. "I'm great. I'm ready to take the plunge."

"You look handsome, sweetie." She fixed my collar for me before stepping back to admire how I looked.

"Thanks Aunt Cass. I have to thank Uncle Naes for walking Hiro down the aisle later."

"What a beautiful day for a wedding."

"Yes, yes it is Father Roman. Thank you for doing the ceremony for us."

"Anything for the inventor of the robot that watched over my daughter when she was bedridden."

"We just want to help people. We're glad you could help you and your daughter."

He nodded before turning to look down the aisle. I followed his line of sight, passed all of our guests, right to Hiro's smiling face. His hair was slicked back, a departure from his usual unkempt rats nest of hair. He looked stunning in the suit he picked out, simply breath taking. I saw no one else but him as he made his way towards me. Time slowed down and all the memories I had of him flashed around me, I can honestly say that I have never been Happier than I am at this moment in time.

When he finally came to a stop next to me, I finally had a chance to take in his entire form up close. Years had passed by, but he seemed as if he hadn't aged a day. There were signs of a fresh shave and hints of makeup on his face but I didn't care, I was intently focused on the look in his eyes, how their corners turned up as he smiled.

"You look beautiful." He reached up and cupped my cheek, smoothing his thumb under my eye.

"So do you." We turned towards Father Roman, signifying that we were ready for him to begin.

He started speaking but all I could do was think about how lucky I was to be marrying my best friend, my brother, my soulmate. Someone most people would spend their entire lives looking for. Me? I had known mine his entire life.

"And now the grooms will read their vows to one another." He gestured towards Hiro, who took a piece of paper out of his pocket.

"Tadashi, I can honestly say I have never been happier than I am now…" He stopped reading from the slip of paper then looked up at me. "You know what?" He tore the paper in half then stuffed it into his pocket. I could hear some of our guests gasp. "Nothing I wrote down on that paper can accurately describe how I feel right now. I am happier than I have ever been, happier than when we first started dating, happier than when we went on our first date, when we got our place together, happier than when you proposed, happier than when we finally got you back."

"You're going to make me cry."

He laughed a bit before continuing. "Every time I look at you, look into your eyes, I see all the reasons that I first fell for you. I see all the happy times we've shared. I see…a reason to keep moving forward. Good and bad times, we saw each other through it. I vow to stay by your side, to love you always, to appreciate you and all that you do, to get on your nerves, and to continue forward with you. We already have a bright future, but I intend to keep building up our future with you."

By the time he finished, he was full out crying, the tears streaming down his cheeks soaked into the creases of his smile. I took out my handkerchief and wiped his face for him, couldn't have him looking like a mess when the wedding videographer, A.K.A. Honey Lemon, caught this moment.

"And now Tadashi will give his vows."

"It's funny, most people spend their lives looking for their true love, someone they never get tired of seeing in the morning when they wake up or the evening when they go to sleep. I was lucky enough to have mine dropped right under my nose. I've seen you go through every phase imaginable and watched you turn into the man you are today. You're still a little too cocky for your own good but I've come to actually appreciate that about you. You're the most amazing brother, friend, and lover I could hope for. I vow to protect you, to keep you close, to put you first, to do everything in my power to make sure you never have to worry, and above all else, to love you until the end of time and beyond." I wiped away the tears brimming in my eyes before looking back at Father Roman.

"Well…even I'm getting a bit choked up. We are all gathered here to witness the union of two magnificent and caring individuals. Hiro Hamada and Tadashi Hamada. I can honestly say I've never been happier to facilitate a marriage in my entire career as an ordained minister." He looked at both of us before continuing. "You may turn and face one another." We did as instructed. "Do you, Hiro Hamada, take Tadashi Hamada, to be your lawfully wedded husband? To love him in sickness and in health, in wealth, and in poverty, in good times and bad times, until death do you part?"

"I do."

"And do you, Tadashi Hamada, take Hiro Hamada, to be your lawfully wedded husband? To love him in sickness and in health, in wealth, and in poverty, in good times and bad times, until death do you part?"

"I do."

"May we have the rings, please?" Duke came trotting up the aisle with a pillow in his mouth. He stopped in front of us, allowing us to pick up the other's ring. "Hiro, repeat after me: with this ring, I thee wed."

"With this ring, I thee wed."

"Tadashi: With this ring, I thee wed."

"With this ring, I thee wed."

"And with the placement of these rings on their fingers, a commitment is made. A commitment to be faithful, honest, and to remain by one another's side. Let everyone here bear witness to this wonderful union. With the power vested in me by the city of San Fransokyo, I now pronounce you, husband and husband. You may now kiss the groom."

I cupped Hiro's cheek then leaned in close to him. I was about to close the rest of the gap between us but he beat me to it. Our lips pressed together and the world seemed to fall away. All that really mattered was the person I was bonded to and our future together.

"They look so cute don't they? It's been years and I still feel like it's the first day of them being an official couple."

"They did look very happy when they finally said 'I do'. Did you get good footage?"

"Of course. Just gotta edit it and throw in my own touch for added flare and then I'll get it back to them, but for now, I'm off the clock. Time to enjoy the reception."

"Want me to get you a plate of food?"

"You know what I like."

"Taking that as a yes. I'll be right back."

"I can't stop looking at our rings." Our rings matched in all aspects except the color of the designs and stones. We decided to wear each other's favorite colors to signify that even though we differ in some aspects, we can deal with it for the other. The rings were black bands with two dragons etched into them, the mouths of which opened around the stones. In the dead center was an H for Hamada. My dragons and stones were blue while Tadashi's were red.

He looked down at our clasped hands and smiled. "They are beautiful. Like you." He kissed me on the cheek then chuckled a bit.

"What's so funny?"

"I have a surprise for you."

"Really? Because I do too."

"You wanna go first?"

"Sure." I walked over to the dance floor with a glass and a fork. I tapped the fork on the glass a few times and waited for the room to quiet down. "Thank you all for coming to witness the happiest day of our lives. We couldn't be more grateful. I have a surprise for my husband. Guys, if you could help me out here, and Tadashi, come sit in the middle of the dance floor please."

Go Go rose from her seat, followed by Mateo and Jonathan. Go Go took over the DJ booth while Mateo and Jonathan sat a chair in front of me.

When Tadashi finally sat down in front of me, I made out a puzzled look on his face. "Trust me."

"I do, with all my heart."

"Ready?" I got a nod from Go Go, then Mateo tossed me a mic before taking his seat. "This song is dedicated to the love of my life and any other dedicated couples in the room."

"Hiro. What are you-"

He got quiet as soon as the song began. His eyes lit up, and that gorgeous smile of his graced his features. I couldn't help smiling back at him. I knew singing this song to him would be the best wedding gift I could give him…in public anyway.

"You're the light, you're the night  
You're the color of my blood  
You're the cure, you're the pain  
You're the only thing I wanna touch  
Never knew that it could mean so much, so much"

I sauntered over to him as I sang, draping myself over his shoulders and nuzzling my cheek against his.

"You're the fear, I don't care  
'Cause I've never been so high  
Follow me through the dark  
Let me take you past our satellites  
You can see the world you brought to life, to life"

I came from behind him and offered him my hand. He took it, standing close to me with his arm around me.

"So love me like you do, lo-lo-love me like you do  
Love me like you do, lo-lo-love me like you do  
Touch me like you do, to-to-touch me like you do  
What are you waiting for?"

We began to sway and dance together, I still managed to keep my voice even and melodic despite my body moving in an erratic pattern.

"Fading in, fading out  
On the edge of paradise  
Every inch of your skin is a holy grail I've got to find  
Only you can set my heart on fire, on fire  
Yeah, I'll let you set the pace  
'Cause I'm not thinking straight  
My head's spinning around I can't see clear no more"

Tadashi dipped me when I paused for a breath, he held me there so I could sing the next line.

"What are you waiting for?"

He pulled me upright then quickly swayed with me as I began to sing again.

"Love me like you do, lo-lo-love me like you do (like you do)  
Love me like you do, lo-lo-love me like you do  
Touch me like you do, to-to-touch me like you do  
What are you waiting for?

Love me like you do, lo-lo-love me like you do (like you do)  
Love me like you do, lo-lo-love me like you do (yeah)  
Touch me like you do, to-to-touch me like you do  
What are you waiting for?"

We stopped and pressed our foreheads together, then sang the next verse together.

"I'll let you set the pace  
'Cause I'm not thinking straight  
My head's spinning around I can't see clear no more  
What are you waiting for?

Love me like you do, lo-lo-love me like you do (like you do)  
Love me like you do, lo-lo-love me like you do (yeah)  
Touch me like you do, to-to-touch me like you do  
What are you waiting for?

Love me like you do, lo-lo-love me like you do (like you do)  
Love me like you do, lo-lo-love me like you do (oh)  
Touch me like you do, to-to-touch me like you do  
What are you waiting for?"

When the song ended, we got cheers from our guests, but it all sounded muffled to me. My only focus was right in front of me.

"You still got it. Even after your voice got deeper you can still hit those high notes."

"And you sir, are still very light on your feet."

"I love you."

"I love you too, now, what's your surprise?"

"Gladly." He took the mic from my hand then cleared his throat before turning to address our guests. "Wasn't he amazing? Even after the voice drop, he still sounds angelic." He snaked his arm around my lower back, pulling me into his side. "He's my angel. Anyway, I have a surprise of my own for him. Fred? We all set up?"

"Ready to go whenever you are. Catch." Fred tossed Tadashi a small remote.

"What are you planning?"

"Something you'll potentially hate me for." He pressed the button in the top left corner of the remote. A projector that hung down from the ceiling turned on, coating the moon in black. "With the help of our wonderful audio-visual guru, Fred, as well as my lovely aunt and uncle, I present to you, a slideshow of the times our family have shared with one another. Sorry in advance guys."

The title screen appeared, it read 'The Happiest Moments of My Life'. I smiled up at him before kissing him on the cheek. He stood there, me pressed against his side, narrating each and every picture that came across the projector. He made some comments that made anyone in the picture either scowl or laugh. He got heckled by someone in our family whenever an embarrassing picture of him appeared.

"There are two things left in this blast from the past of a slideshow. One is a picture of one of the happiest moments of my life, before today of course, and the other is a video." He clicked to the next to last slide, and there it was. A picture of everyone, Go Go, Honey Lemon, Fred, Wasabi, Aunt Cass, Uncle Naes, Mochi, even Mateo and Jonathan. It was the day we spent out in the city a few days after the trial ended. We all had shopping bags hanging from our arms as well as smiles plastered onto our faces. You could almost feel the happiness radiating off of the picture.

"Tadashi…this is amazing."

"I'm not done yet." He whispered to me. "And now, a video some of you may have already seen before. This video is…well…It's better if I just show you all. Hope we have some Paramore fans out there."

I could hear collective reactions from everyone who was a part of the video. Honey Lemon squealed with joy, Wasabi chuckled 'dear Lord' under his breath, Go Go dragged her hand down her face, and Aunt Cass was caught in a fit of laughter.

"You didn't…"

"Oh but I did. Ladies and gents, enjoy our cover of Paramore's Hallelujah!"

He started the video and as soon as he did, I was taken back to the months we spent filming and editing it. I remembered all the praise we got for it and how excited we were to watch the finished product.

"Your voice used to be so high pitched." I elbowed Tadashi before going back to watching the video. When the video was done, our guests let loose a roar of applause and cheers. "We made that video while we were still at SFIT. And since then, it has reached over 70 million views on YouTube. This concludes my little surprise for my lovely husband. Enjoy the rest of the reception everyone."

"You guys have fun!"

"Take a ton of pictures!"

"Grab up some anime merchandise for me."

"Snag me a sword, Sasuke's to be exact."

"One last hug!"

"One last picture."

"GUYS!" Tadashi shouted. "One at a time. We'll have fun Wasabi, Fred we'll take a bunch of pictures with the camera you got us. Honey Lemon, we'll grab plenty of stuff for you guys and we can take one more picture, Aunt Cass we can have one more hug. Jonathan, Mateo, take care of Duke while we're gone."

He took a deep breath then exhaled it. "What he said." I looked around for a quick second to find someone to take our picture. I felt a tug on my jacket and when I looked down, this little kid was staring up at me.

"Hi!" He said enthusiastically.

I took a knee to be at eye level with him. "Hey there little buddy."

"You're Hiro, you and your husband made Baymax."

"That's right. Can I help you with something?"

He wrapped his tiny arms around me in his best attempt at a hug. He caught me off guard a bit. "Thank you, Baymax helped get me through my treatment."

I hugged him back, giving him a light squeeze. "You're welcome. I'm glad you made it through." He pulled away and smiled at me. "You're a tough little guy. What's your name?"

"Haruki! Haruki Morino! My friends call me Haru."

"It's nice to meet you Haruki."

A woman walked over and kneeled down next to Haruki. "Haruki, there you are! I told you not to wander off or to talk to stran-" She looked up at me and her jaw dropped. "Mr. Hamada! I'm so sorry, Haruki don't bother these nice men."

"No, no, it's fine. I was having fun talking to him. Are you his mom?"

"Umm, no. I'm his social worker. Haruki is in the foster system."

"Oh…" I directed my gaze back at Haruki, who was looking up at Tadashi. "How old are you Haruki?"

He held up five fingers. "I just turned five."

"Well happy birthday."

"Babe, who are your new friends?"

"Hmm? Oh this is Haruki and…"

"Catherine, Catherine Morrison."

"Hi there." Everyone said in unison. Haruki and Catherine waved back at our group.

"Ms. Morrison, can you do us a favor before we board our flight?"

"Sure Mr. Hamada."

"Please, call me Tadashi. Mr. Hamada sounds so formal. Can you take our picture?"

"I wanna be in it!"

"Sure. I don't see a problem with that? Ms. Morrison?"

"If it's okay with all of you, I don't see an issue with it."

"Alright!" Haruki held out his arms, asking to be picked up. I hoisted him up and let him rest on my hip, right between me and Tadashi.

Fred handed her our phone before taking up his spot next to Wasabi on the end. "Everyone ready?"

"Ready!"

"One. Two. Three." Catherine looked at the display with an approving look. "One more for safety." She snapped another before returning the phone to us.

We all gathered around to look at the pictures and they looked amazing. Everyone looked so happy and care free. Haruki appeared to be the happiest of all. "Ms. Morrison, can I speak with you briefly?"

"Of course Mr. H- Tadashi."

Tadashi and Catherine excused themselves for a few minutes, talking about something. I'm sure I'd find out later. "He's so cute! I could just eat him up."

"He even kind of looks like you, Hiro."

"Jonathan's right, the disheveled hair, the nose, even the gap. Only thing is, his eyes are blue-green."

I took a long look at Haruki's smiling face and saw a lot of myself and Tadashi in him. "You guys are right. He has Tadashi's eye shape though. You're adorable Haruki."

"Thank you Mr. Hiro!" Such an excitable little guy.

"Flight 182 to Tokyo, Japan will now begin pre-boarding."

"That's us. We gotta get going."

Haruki's face fell a bit. "Hey now, cheer up. You got to meet the men who invented Baymax. You got a cool photo with us."

"Which I have a copy of." Catherine interjected.

"See, you get to keep it."

"Will you guys come visit me at the orphanage when you come back?"

"Of course we will. Promise." I set him down and held out my pinky. He wrapped his around mine and gave it a squeeze. "We'll see you soon okay?"

"Okay!"

We all exchanged hugs before heading off to our flight. I couldn't stop thinking about Haruki. He was only five years old but had battled some life threatening disease and won. He was in the foster care system at such a young age…I knew from charity work with the organization that handles abandoned and relocated children that most kids his age were usually abandoned at birth or as infants. He's had it rough but he's still so cheerful.

We got settled into our seats and began our wait for the plane to take off. "You're still thinking about him aren't you?"

"Yea…"

"Duke will be fine. Jonathan is good with anim-"

"NOT DUKE YOU DOLT!"

"I'm messing with you. Haruki was something else. Adorable little munchkin."

"Yea, he is. Apparently he looks like us too."

"So I've heard."

"We're definitely going to go visit him when we get back."

"Well…not RIGHT away. We still have something to do."

"Pick Duke up?"

"That too but we have to get settled."

"What do you mean by that?" He shut his eyes and let his lips form into a smirk. I studied his expression for a few seconds before it hit me. "No…you did not…" He peeked at me before shutting his eye again. "You got us the house."

"Maybe." I punched him in the arm. "Ow! Okay, yes, I got us the house. Everyone is going to help set it up. I put the paperwork in that night you passed out in our bed."

"On day 3 of our post-wedding party?"

"Yup."

"You're amazing."

"I know."

"And modest."

"I love you."

"Love you too." He cupped my cheek before kissing me lightly. "So…About Haruki…"


	8. A Place to Call Home

**Authors Note: Well, here it is, the last chapter. Thank you all for reading and reviewing. Hopefully this fic looked better than the other. There are more fics in the work, trust me. If you like my fics then rest assured, there should be more. Thank you. Enjoy the chapter.**

Chapter Eight: A Place to Call Home

"Everything all set up?"

"Yea. The walls look great, the furniture and electronics are all set up, and everything he could ever want is here."

"You think he'll like it here?"

"He'll love it here." He pulled me into his side then kissed my temple. "Come on, we gotta go pick him up…and give everyone time to set up." We walked downstairs, making sure all the decorations were in place and everything was running smoothly.

"How's it coming guys?"

"Food?"

"Check." Go Go said, kicking the oven closed.

"Music?"

"Check." Honey Lemon said from the living room.

"Visuals?"

"Check, dude." Fred called out from behind the TV.

"Decorations?"

"Check." Aunt Cass, Uncle Naes, and Wasabi said from various locations.

"Puppy?"

"Check!" Mateo and Jonathan shouted from the yard. Their reply was followed by a series of barks.

"Everything is running smoothly."

"We should be done by the time you guys get there."

"Alright, let's go."

"Right behind you."

I followed Tadashi to the garage, we climbed into his car then took off towards our destination. "Excited?"

"Very. This has been in the works for a very long time."

"I know…we're doing the right thing though." He took his hand off of the steering wheel and grasped mine.

"He's going to be so happy with us."

Over the past three years or so, Tadashi and I had been getting to know Haruki. Ever since we met him at the airport, we had been quite captivated by him. The moment we got back from our honeymoon in Tokyo, we visited him at the orphanage. We brought him some things from Japan and ended up talking and playing with him for about three hours. We learned so much about him, such as the fact that he loves all things anime, he wants to learn to draw like Tadashi and I because he's seen our sketches in newspaper articles, he loves animals, helping people, and wants to grow up to change the world.

He was dropped off at the orphanage when he was barely an hour old. When he was taken into the hospital for basic medical tests, they found an abnormal growth. Said growth began to exhibit signs of cancer when he was 2. By the time he was 4, he had spent most of his short life being treated for cancer.

Over the last three years Tadashi and I had talked more and more about having a child. Of course we could have our own with the aid of a couple of surrogates and we will but seeing Haruki and spending so much time with him we began to get more and more attached to him. We'll probably make him a big brother after he settles in.

Now, we were on our way to the adoption office to pick him up and take him home. It was a surprise to him. He thought we were taking him out again. Catherine had kept things under wraps for us and we were so grateful for that.

As we pulled up in front of the office, Haruki was already waiting on the steps with Catherine. When he saw Tadashi's car, he sprang to his feet before running to the curb. "You guys are back!"

"Of course we are, have we ever broken a promise to come back?"

He shook his head and as soon as we got out of the car he hugged both of us. "I missed you guys."

We each placed a hand on his back. "We missed you too." I knelt down in front of him, smiling as I saw how happy he was to see us. "You got all your stuff ready for the trip?"

"Yea! I can't believe you guys talked Cat into letting me go with you for more than a day."

"It took some convincing but we managed to do it. We just need to go inside for a bit before we go." Tadashi said with a broad smile gracing his features.

"Okay."

"We just need you to wait outside Catherine's office okay?" He nodded his head enthusiastically. I stood up and offered Haruki my hand. Tadashi did the same. He took both of our hands and walked with us inside.

"That's the last of the paperwork you two. Sorry this took so long."

"It was worth the wait. He'll be so happy with us."

"I know he will, he already loves you guys. Whenever you get back from some outing, he never stops talking about what you did or how well you treated him." Catherine filed the paperwork away before returning her gaze to us.

"Would you like to attend his welcoming party? We have more than enough food."

"I would love to…but Haruki might get a tad suspicious if I tag along. I'll probably be around a bit later."

"Alright. We'll see you later." We got up and extended our hands towards her. "Thank you so much."

"Yes, thank you so very much." She shook our hands before picking up some papers on her desk and getting back to work. We exited her office, upon doing so, Haruki sprang to his feet with a smile on his face as well as a gleam in his eyes.

"So? Can we go?"

Tadashi chuckled before ruffling Haruki's hair. "Yes, we can. Get your suitcase and we'll go."

Haruki did as he was instructed before he followed us out to the car. I put his suitcase into the trunk before ushering Haruki into his car seat. "Aww come on, I'm way too big for this!"

"Last I checked, you were still under the height requirement to use the normal seatbelts."

"Only by an inch or two!"

"Haruki, you're 4'4, when you hit 4'9 we'll ditch the car seat."

He pouted a bit before relenting. "Okay…" I secured him in his car seat before taking my spot in the passenger's seat. During the ride I texted Fred and said we were on our way.

When we got to our house Haruki was looking around at his new surroundings trying to figure out where we were. "Hey Haruki, can you do us a favor?"

"Sure."

"When we get out we need you to close your eyes. Can you do that for us?" He nodded before undoing the straps to his car seat and climbing out of the car.

When we got out, Tadashi went to get Haruki's suitcase and I went to take Haruki's hand to guide him into our home. We walked up the steps and opened the door. We stopped when we got to the middle of the living room, I could see everyone almost bursting to shout 'welcome home' but thankfully kept quiet.

"Alright Haruki, open your eyes."

He did and was met with smiling faces and a cake that said 'Welcome to the Family'. "WELCOME HOME, HARUKI!" Everyone shouted.

He looked a bit startled but his radiant smile quickly replaced his stunned expression. Right before he began to cry. Even though he was crying, that signature smile of his remained. He his sobs sounded a bit like laughter.

"Well he looks happy." Go Go stated.

"I am happy! This is the best thing that's happened to me…aside from meeting you guys…wait…this means…"

Tadashi and I nodded. "You're legally our son now."

"You don't have to call us 'dad' right away, you can do it when you're ready."

"Thank you…Dads."

"Awww! That's so cute! Picture, picture!" Honey Lemon scooted us closer together before stepping back and taking a few pictures of us.

"Okay, okay. Let's eat! Oh, one more thing. Jonathan! Mateo! Do the thing!" I shouted. They both took up spots at the back door before pushing them open. Not even five seconds later, Duke was bolting into the house and toppling over Haruki. Duke started licking every inch of his face, Haruki was all smiles and giggles which warmed my heart.

"Okay, down Duke. Come on, let the poor child breathe." Wasabi said jovially as he tugged at Duke's bandana.

Haruki sat on the floor rubbing his face on his sleeves and giggling. "I like this place already! You guys have my favorite kind of dog. I've always wanted a Huskie."

"Yup, Duke's our furry child. He's also well trained. Hiro made sure of that." He pulled me in and kissed my temple. "Guys, start setting up the food and cutting the cake, we're going to show Haru around."

"Got it. Treat our nephew well or else Auntie Go Go is gonna knock some heads."

"Yes ma'am. Come on, we'll show you around." Tadashi and I guided him to the backyard and showed him to the pool house and around our pool.

"I can't wait to go for a swim."

"I remember you enjoy swimming. That's why we took you to the lake so many times."

"I really appreciate you guys doing that for me."

"Of course. We love you."

Haruki stood there in a stunned silence for a second before looking away. "Haru?"

"Are you okay?"

"You guys…love me?"

Tadashi and I looked at each other quizzically for a second before looking back at Haruki. "Of course we do…why wouldn't we?"

"My…my parent's didn't love me enough to keep me…I kind of thought…people couldn't love me. I thought love was one way. I was always giving people my love but I didn't feel it returned."

"Haru…I know for a fact that Catherine loves you. The hospital staff that took care of you when you were sick, they love you. We love you. Everyone in the house loves you. You know Duke loves you."

"And Duke is actually a really good judge of character. Every time we came home smelling like you, he'd get excited. After 3 years, he still got excited."

I knelt down to his level so I could look him in his eyes. "Haruki Morino, of course we love you. Since the day we met you, we felt that there was something special about you. When we got on the plane the first thing we talked about was you. For the last 3 years we've been putting in so much work trying to get to know you and getting everything together to bring you home."

"Really?"

"Of course. We feel like you're the missing piece in our life." He threw his arms around me and started sobbing into my shoulder. I picked him up then started rubbing circles into his back. Tadashi sandwiched him between us, encircling us in his arms.

"Shhh, it's okay. You're alright. You're home now, you're with people that love you unconditionally."

Eventually, his sobs stopped and he pulled away from my shoulder to look us in the eye. "Ready to finish the tour?" He nodded but refused to let go of me, so I carried him around. Not that I minded, I felt like a real dad. I was already comforting my child.

We took him back inside and up to the second level to show him to our room, the bathroom, and his room. "Wow! Is this all for me?"

"Of course it is. State of the art television and laptop complete with a printer and scanner."

"Lofted bed-futon combination. All the seasons of your favorite shows and all the volumes of your favorite manga."

"School supplies, you start in a week by the way."

"And, that envelope on your bed, it has forms regarding an apprenticeship with a vet clinic a mile or two from here. It just needs your signature."

"There's more in the basement but we'll let everyone else tell you about what's down there."

Haruki ran his hand over the railing that comprised his new bed. He seemed to not be concerned with all the tech. "I love it…I've never really had a bed this nice before. Don't get me wrong, I appreciate everything you guys got me, everything you've done for me, but the bed is the best so far."

"You mean…we could get rid of everything, live in some crappy studio apartment in the worst part of town…"

"And I'd still be happy as long as I had a decent bed, or even just my Dads and Duke."

"This kid is too much…I'm going to cry,"

"Come on, let's go back downstairs and enjoy your welcome party before Tadashi starts crying."

We descended the stairs and joined our guests. Catherine had shown up while we were giving Haruki a tour. We all enjoyed the food, skillfully crafted by Wasabi and Go Go, while watching a slide show of pictures and videos from our days at SFIT and the days after our wedding. Eventually the party moved to the pool and then around the fire pit where we made a few s'mores before calling it a night.

Before everyone left, we took Haruki down to the basement to show him what was waiting for him. In addition to the gifts upstairs, Haruki also received a custom go-kart, hand crafted by Go-Go, a life time subscription to Photoshop, courtesy of Fred, a chemistry set, designed by Honey Lemon, a cook book from Aunt Cass, and a hand crafted sword dubbed 'Gin No Sora', meaning silver sky, from Wasabi. The blade was black with silver swirls resembling clouds near the guard. We made him promise to learn how to use a sword safely before he got to use Gin No Sora. He was excited to start learning self-defense in our personal gym but we told him he would have to wait until he was settled in.

After everyone had gone, we noticed that it was nine thirty. "Okay Haru, time for you to go get ready for bed."

"Okay!" He bounded up the stairs and a few minutes later we heard the sink turn on.

We started picking cleaning up down stairs in a comfortable silence before I heard Tadashi chuckle. "What's up with you?"

"I'm just happy. We have a son. We have a child together." He tossed some trash in the garbage can before relaxing against the counter. "And he's so happy to be here, he already accepts us as his parents…we're parents."

"I know, there's nothing like it in the world." I walk over to him and stand between his legs.

"You really think he'll be happy here?"

"Of course. He only needs us, Duke, and a bed. Everything else is just a perk of being our son."

"You're right." He gave me a peck on the lips before wrapping his arms around my waist.

"I love you."

"I love you too. Come on, let's get upstairs, I could actually use a few more hours of sleep."

"That does sound good. Especially considering in a week, we'll have to take him to school. Might as well start getting our sleep schedule together now."

"Crap, you're right. Why don't you head upstairs and make sure Haru's okay. I'll make us some tea."

I kissed him on the cheek. "That sounds good." I walked down the hall and up the stairs then headed towards the bathroom. The light was on but Haruki wasn't using it. I flipped off the light before heading to Haruki's room, where I found him on the futon with Duke on resting his head in his lap. "He really likes you."

"I like him too, he's so nice to me. He's been by my side since we came down for the party. He didn't try to steal my food, he didn't whine when he wanted some, or stare at my plate. He just stood by me the entire day."

"He's happy he gets to meet you. Tadashi and I had been talking about you and had been coming home smelling like you for a long time, so Duke was curious as to who we had been spending so much time with." I stroked Duke's back a few times. "Knowing him he'll probably sleep with you tonight. He can climb the ladder if you decide to sleep up top tonight."

"Well…I was hoping I could sleep with you guys tonight."

"Of course you can, but eventually you'll have to sleep in here. Duke will be with you when you do."

"Okay…read me a story?"

"Of course. Pick out a book from the shelf and I'll come read it when I'm done getting ready for bed." I got up, kissed Haruki on the forehead, and then walked down the hall to my room to get ready for bed.

As I was washing my face, Tadashi crept up behind me and grabbed me around my waist. "Hey there, big daddy."

I stood up straight, dropping my face towel into the sink. "Hey, yourself."

He pressed himself into me, conforming to the natural curves of my body. "You feeling frisky tonight?" He slid two fingers into the waistband of my sweatpants.

"A bit, but I promised Haru that I would read to him and he could sleep in our bed tonight."

"Already acting like a father." He kissed my neck before resting his head on my shoulder, looking at our reflections in the mirror. "You know, after all these years, we don't look that different."

"Speak for yourself. I've grown, I'm almost your height."

He let out a short laugh. "You're still off by about 3 or 4 inches."

"I cut my hair so it's not as big and wild." My usually disheveled crow's nest of hair has neatly trimmed but still resembled my former 'carefree' style.

"You've also got some muscle definition going on. Trust me, I spend enough time exploring to know."

His hands found their way under my shirt, tracing over my stomach and chest. "You've bulked up too, and I've come to appreciate a little stubble on you."

"North or south of the border?" I elbowed him in the gut.

"So much has changed…I can't believe we're the same two brothers from five years ago…"

"That it has…I-"

"Daddy?"

Haru appeared at our bathroom door with Duke by his side. "Oh, I'm so sorry. Your father and I got caught up talking. Go wait in your room, I'll be right there."

"Okay, Daddy."

Haru turned and left, heading back towards his room. "Sorry, didn't mean to keep the little guy waiting." Tadashi let go of me and began to ready himself for bed as well.

"It's okay. Maybe you can read with us,"

"I'd like that."

"Alright, I'll be down the hall." I kissed him on the cheek before heading towards Haru's room. "Hey, bud."

"Hi." He was sitting on the futon with Duke resting at his feet.

"Your father's going to be in here in a bit. Why don't we turn the futon into a bed so we can all lay together?"

"Okay!" He slid off the couch, making Duke stir in curiosity.

We had the futon converted and found a comfortable spot by the time Tadashi came in and joined us. He slid into a comfortable spot next to Haru, pulling him close to his side before giving him a kiss on the top of his head. We opened the book Haru picked out and began to read it. Since there were multiple characters, Tadashi and I took turns reading so we could do different voices. Haru got a kick out of hearing Tadashi voice female characters, I have to say, I did too. By the time we finished the book, Haruki was fast asleep. I had a feeling that would happen. Tadashi and I slid out of our spots next to Haruki, flipped on his lamp, leaving the room glowing with dim, ambient lighting, and shut his door on our way out.

"He's so cute when he's sleeping."

"Remember we were driving back from the carnival one time and he wanted you to sit in the back with him?"

"Mmhmm, he fell asleep on my lap on the ride back."

"I saw you stroking his hair through the rearview mirror."

"He looked at ease. I think that's the moment I knew that our bond was cemented."

I took Tadashi's hand and led him to our bed. "You two looked so cute together."

"You two looked cute when I came in earlier. And when you were carrying him around today."

"He was almost surgically attached to me. I felt the love." I chuckled.

Tadashi flopped down onto our bed, sighing with content. "God it feels great to lie down in our bed."

I slid in next to him. "That it does."

"Good night, babe. I love you."

"I love you too."

This was it. We were parents. Our first day wasn't so bad, I knew that the days to come would be better and worse than today, however I did not dread them. I welcomed them. Each day from now on meant that we would be together as a family. I was content with life and I knew whatever life brought, I wouldn't have to face it alone. I had Tadashi, Aunt Cass, Uncle Naes, Go Go, Honey Lemon, Fred, Wasabi, Jonathan, Mateo, Duke, and now Haruki as well as everyone's respective families. I would never be alone, we all had each other. Fortunately, the future looked bright.

"Haruki Hamada, get down here now or you'll be late for your belt test!"

"Honey, calm down. We have 2 hours."

"I know, but it's not exactly a stroll up the street to the studio, and Haruki needs to eat something."

"Daddy, no yelling."

"See, even Eiji agrees."

"Eiji's just being a kiss up." Haruki said as he strolled into the kitchen.

"Be nice to your brother." Haruki rolled his eyes and chuckled. "Yes, Dad." He hugged me before going to hug Tadashi and kiss Eiji on the top of his head.

"Where's Koji?"

"In our room." Eiji responded.

"I'll go get him, Tadashi make sure Haru eats something."

"I was gonna!"

"Sugar coated cereal and candy don't count." He slumped into his seat and pouted,

"Calm down. I'll make you something you'll love."

"Omelet and pancakes?"

"Your Dad already made the pancakes and was prepping the eggs for the omelets."

"You guys know me well."

"Thank you, Tadashi," I went up the stairs towards Eiji and Koji's shared room and found Koji reading on his bed. "Hey, we're eating breakfast, you should come downstairs."

He closed his book and fiddled with his glasses. "I know…sorry Daddy."

"What's the matter?"

"I…umm…"

"You know you can talk to me."

He remained silent for a minute or two. "Haruki-nii is so good at martial arts, even Eiji is good at it. I'm…"

"It's not for everyone. Auntie Honey isn't very good at it. Neither is Uncle Fred. The only reason we wanted you and your brothers to learn is to be able to defend yourself and others if necessary. You aren't your brothers, you're you. You'll get it, it'll just take you a bit longer."

"How long did it take you?"

I thought about what made Tadashi start teaching me again and let out a sigh. "It took me a few years to get decent at it but then your father stopped teaching me. He started again when we needed to protect our family and ourselves. With the added pressure, I quickly improved. But for you, all you have to do is go at your own pace."

"Really?"

"Really. You know something?"

"You do somethings better than Haru and Eiji."

"Really?!"

"Really. You make sure every part of form is smooth and flows. You're the embodiment of a waterbender. Haruki…he's more forceful but still flows, he's a fire elemental through and through. Since you and Eiji are twins, he's water as well, however, he follows after Haru and your father so he's ended up more or an airbender."

"Do I follow after you, Daddy?"

I put my hand atop his head. "Yes, you do. Do you feel better?"

"Yea!"

"Good." I pulled him into my side, rubbing his shoulder and kissing the top of his head. "Now, run downstairs and get something to eat before we leave."

"Alright. Love you Daddy."

"Love you too."

"Congrats, ya little squirt! I never doubted you."

"Thanks Oba Go Go."

"I'm so proud of you, those axe kicks of yours are getting better."

"Thanks Auntie Honey."

"I gotta spar you more often after seeing you and that black belt go at it. Your dads have taught you very well."

"You're right Uncle Wasabi, they have. It's been a long road but I finally ranked up to red belt."

Hiro and I scooped up Haruki, sandwiching him between us in a bone crushing hug. "We're so proud of you!" We said in unison.

"Dads…crushing…me…can't…breathe."

"Boys, put that poor child down."

We did as Aunt Cass asked and proceeded to shower Haru with kisses. "Daaads, you're embarrassing me."

"We don't care, we're proud of you."

"You did so well."

"We're all going out to celebrate. Cleo and Naes are meeting us at the place."

"What place are you talking about Oba Go Go?"

"Can I tell him?"

"Sure."

"We're going to the same place we went to for your birthday."

"SHIT, REALLY?"

"LANGUAGE!" Hiro, myself, and Aunt Cass all scolded at once, causing Haruki to wince.

"Sorry…I'm just excited. That place has everything! Go-karts, paint ball, laser tag, mini-golf, even a water park!"

"I wanna ride with Auntie Go Go!" Eiji and Koji said in unison.

"Hey! I've beaten her before. You guys don't wanna ride with your dear old dad?"

They looked at each other. Then proceeded to cling to Go Go's legs and chant her name. "Wow, washed up as a father at only thirty years old."

"I know, my own boys, my own flesh and blood."

"Aww, sweetie, you'll be fine."

"Umm, hello? Can we get going?"

"Sure." Hiro tossed Haruki his keys. "You're driving."

Haruki stared at the keys in his hands for a second before smiling and hugging Hiro. Even after seven years, his smile still shines as bright as it used to. We all piled into our respective vehicles to go meet Go Go and Honey Lemon's daughter, Cleo, and Uncle Naes. Once we arrived, we grabbed Koji and Eiji form their car seats before proceeding inside. From then on, we all went on the most of the same rides together.

By the days end, all three of our boys were in bed and Hiro was passed out in our bed. I was left awake reflecting with our loyal dog. I couldn't believe it. Just over seven years ago we were bringing Haruki home and about 8 months later Cleo joined the family. She was a perfect fusion of her mothers. Go Go's style and love for speed, combined with Honey Lemon's love for all things pink and scientific. Two years later we had our twins, Eiji and Koji. Due to advancements in technology, Hiro and I were able to have healthy boys that had both of our genes. It was amazing, I'll never forget welcoming them into this world.

Haruki is 15, Eiji and Koji are both 5, and Cleo is 8. Fred and Wasabi were even thinking of having a kid. They have been married for quite some time now just like Honey Lemon and Go Go. Speaking of couples, Mateo and Jonathan are still going strong. A few bumps here and there, but they were still in love…and in college now. Mateo was studying to get a business degree and Jonathan wanted to teach. Aunt Cass was still in the restaurant game but she oversaw a few Lucky Cat Café's around the country. Uncle Naes' business was still booming as always so he helped Aunt Cass finance expanding her business. Go Go and Honey Lemon worked for a company that worked closely with SFIT and its students. They helped up and coming students with their inventions and were guest speakers in a few classes. Fred had a few contracts with design companies, making posters and art work for them and doing editing projects on the side. Wasabi was a Tai Chi instructor and helped us out a lot when we taught our students. Hiro didn't really work so much as volunteer at almost every place in town. I, on the other hand, work closely with Uncle Naes, he's grooming me to take over the company. He understands I'm a father and lets me take off when I need to, but he still works me hard. All and all, life was pretty sweet.

"Babe…"

"Hmm?"

"You're still up?"

"Yea…just…thinking."

"Why are you…oh, I see." I stopped midsentence, as I turned to see the reasons Hiro was up. He was holding Eiji's hand and was balancing Koji on his hip.

"Can't sleep, Eiji?"

He rubbed his eye with his free hand. "Koji woke me up again."

"C'mere." I stood up and picked him up, letting him curl into the crook of my neck, matching his brother's position on Hiro. "Hmph, they really are twins."

"You okay?"

"Actually…" I looked at him, then at our boys, then at Duke, who was standing by my side, looking up at me. "I couldn't be better."

Hiro smirked at me before leaning in to kiss me. "Good. Let's get these two to bed." He started up the stairs, followed closely by our loyal canine.

"Right behind you."

Right! Thanks to all my readers and reviewers! I really appreciate everyone who read both of the fics to the end. Any critiques are welcomed. Oh, before I forget, I'm working on a story (or 3) but one of them is related to this one. Haruki is going a journey of self discovery. It's nowhere near done but it's getting there. Thank you everyone for reading!


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